Summer of the Dragon
by Lena Phoria
Summary: 3 years after the war, Hermione takes a break from Ron and accepts a summer job collecting supplies for Ollivander's wands. What she doesn't expect is having to work with Draco Malfoy, who is more haunted by his past than she ever would have believed. Together they will travel the world, fight dragons, conquer demons and maybe find exactly what they've been looking for.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi everyone! Long time reader, first time writer. Please be gentle :-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It all belongs to JK Rowling, who is awesome!**

**New A/N: So I have just started editing this. There are a lot of grammatical errors, especially in the beginning since I, for some reason, didn't devote as much time to editing when I started this. If you see anything I miss please let me know!**

The sun had barely begun to rise and already the streets of Diagon Alley were bustling with activity. Children were stocking up on Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, Cauldron Cakes, and Extendable Ears to last them for the entire summer, while their parents bought the more essential items – in their eyes, anyway - like extra Floo powder, magical cookbooks and summer robes.

Four young twenty-something's had just come in through the Floo network, none more aware of how late they were running than the first, a girl with bushy brown hair tide back in a messy ponytail and chocolate-brown eyes. Next came a pretty redheaded girl with freckles and, behind her, a slightly older boy with the same. The last to come through was another boy with messy black hair, green eyes, and glasses. Many people stared as he came through, all eager to see the Boy Who Lived – twice! - in the flesh. The boy blushed, all too aware that he had one of the best known faces in the entire wizarding world.

The girls looked at each other and rolled their eyes.

"Honestly Harry. You know you're going to be gaped at every time you come through here so you should really work on a more graceful landing," said the girl with the bushy hair.

"Sorry, Hermione." Harry's blush grew brighter.

"I think his clumsiness makes him endearing. Like he's actually human, just like the rest of us," said the redheaded girl, grabbing onto his hand and making sure everyone saw the glittery diamond attached to her left ring finger. "After all, we don't want everyone thinking the great_ Harry Potter_ has a big head, do we?"

"It still looks pretty big to me, Ginny," joked the other ginger.

Ginny gave him a sharp look. He immediately cowered where he stood.

"Honestly, Ron, this is no time to be fooling with Harry. We are going to be late," snapped Hermione.

"But you just did the same –"

It was too late. Hermione didn't hear him. She was already hustling down the street towards her destination. Ron, Harry, and Ginny ran after her, Ron taking her small suitcase from her and grabbing her hand as they walked.

They all stared into all of the shops as they passed them; reminiscing about the days they used to come here before every school year at Hogwarts. Well, except for Hermione, Ron, and Harry's seventh year, since none of them had attended. As it turned out, defeating You-Know-Who earned them an instant graduation. While they sometimes regretted losing that last year of school, nothing could compare to the gratification they felt after witnessing the aftermath of all they had done.

It had been three years since the war and finally everything in the wizarding world was as it should be. The Ministry was being run by decent wizards and witches – none more effective than Kingsley – those wrongfully accused had been released from Azkaban, and those rightfully accused had been sent there, Dementors had all but vanished, and places like Hogwarts and Diagon Alley had been returned to their former glory. The wizarding world was at peace.

Memories flooded their eyes as they walked through the streets, recalling the days when they bought books at Flourish and Blotts or sundaes at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. Hermione had to clutch Ron's hand tighter and pull him back as he began to stray off towards Quality Quidditch Supplies to stare at the newest broom in the window. She looked back and saw that Ginny was doing the exact same thing with Harry. They rolled their eyes at each other. _Boys_.

Finally, they had reached their destination. The four of them stopped and stared up at the sign that read, _Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 BC_, in peeling gold letters over the door.

"This is it," said Hermione, turning to look at all of her friends, her eyes already filling up with tears. "For the next three months I am at Mr. Ollivander's beck and call."

"I just wish you knew what being at his beck and call _actually_ meant," said Ron. They all ignored him.

"We're going to miss you, Hermione," said Ginny, going in for the first hug goodbye. "Make sure to owl us every day."

"Yeah," said Harry, going in right after her. "It won't be the same without you. Who will let me and Ron know when we're being thick?"

"I'm sure Ginny is quite up for the task," said Hermione, wiping away a tear. She looked to Ginny, who nodded very seriously. She knew keeping Harry and Ron in check wouldn't be an easy mission.

They all stood silently for a moment while Ron kicked a pebble on the ground, avoiding Hermione's eyes at all costs.

After waiting awkwardly for a minute, Ginny grabbed Harry's hand and pulled him away. She was not blind to Hermione's uneasiness as she stared repeatedly at her watch, unlike the boys.

"We're going to go look at something over there for a minute. Take your time, you two."

Once they were gone Hermione moved closer to Ron. When she was right next to him she carefully put her hand into his and rested her head on his shoulder. Once that electricity shot through them, Ron leaned over and gave her a kiss on the forehead.

He sighed. "I wish you didn't have to go."

"I know," she said, "but, in the end, I think this will be good for us. We've never had this time apart."

"You're the one who wants it, not me."

Removing her head from his shoulder, Hermione looked at him sternly. "Don't be like that, Ron. You know I'm right."

"You _always_ are." He rolled his eyes.

Hermione's jaw dropped. He hadn't spoken to her so rudely in years. "No need to be hurtful," she said, wiping more tears away.

Ron sighed. "I'm sorry, Hermione. I just don't get why you wanna go on a break all of a sudden. Things have been going good, haven't they?" he asked.

"Yes, of course," she said, smiling. "But other than my brief romance with Viktor during our fourth year and your … _disgusting_ snogging sessions with Lavender Brown during the better half of our sixth year we haven't really been with anyone else, have we?"

Ron shook his head. "No. I guess not."

"And that's exactly why we should take this summer apart. To … explore our other options."

"But I don't _want _to explore any other options. I only want you."

Hermione put a gentle hand on his cheek. "That's sweet. But I just want you to be sure. Before we rush into anything."

"Rush?" he said, furrowing his eyebrows. "We've been together for three years. George and Angelina were only together a year when they got married, and Ginny and Harry got engaged just after the war. At this point I'd say a turtle would _rush_ right past us."

"I told you. I just need time," she said. "This is a big decision. And if we both feel the same way after the summer is over, then we'll have our answer."

"All right," he groaned, kicking that same stone all the way across the road.

Hermione laughed. "Honestly, Ron, I don't know what you're so worried about. I will probably be too busy this summer to even think about romance. Mr. Ollivander has promised me a packed schedule."

"He better have," said Ron, pulling Hermione in for a kiss.

Her knees went weak as the heat of passion ran all through her body. Every kiss she shared with Ron was as exhilarating as the first. They'd been on the brink of death and Ron had just shown concern for the house-elves for the very first time. It was a magical moment she would never forget. Even with Harry standing right there, reminding them how they were in the middle of a war, did not take away from its specialness. Only enhanced it.

A cool air washed over them, sending chills down Hermione's spine. She tried to stay focused on the kiss, but it was hard with that icy fork poking at her.

"Gross," said a crude voice. "Get a room, Weasel." A pause. "On second thought, please devoid me of that picture."

Hermione turned to see Draco Malfoy standing directly behind them. His eyebrows rose when he saw her.

"Is that you, Granger? You fooled me by pulling your bushy hair back. You should really let it loose. It's _sexy_," he said with a snarky grin.

"What are _you_ doing here, Malfoy?" asked Harry, immediately coming to their aid.

"Well, well. Look what we have here. Potty and the Weasel together again. And you even brought the Weaselette," he added, looking at Ginny. His eyes immediately drew to the diamond on her finger. "Oh, my apologies. _Pottyette_." He laughed.

"Not until September. Then you can call me Mrs. Potty," smiled Ginny, giving bunny kisses to her future husband, who gave them right back to her.

"Disgusting," said Draco in a hushed voice. He looked like he was going to vomit.

Turning away from his fiancée, Harry looked to Draco and repeated, "What are you doing here, Malfoy?"

"Why do you care? Do you fancy me or something? Have to follow my every move?" They all blinked. Draco rolled his eyes. "Can't a guy stop by the wand shop without getting the third degree?"

"I doubt Mr. Ollivander wants you in there after what happened to him at Malfoy Manor," snarled Ron, obviously the one in their group most threatened by Draco's presence.  
>"Oh, he's fine with it. He's the one who asked me here. Come along, Ruskle," said Draco, with a clap of his hands. A small house-elf carrying an extremely large suitcase pulled up behind him.<p>

Every muscle in Hermione's body twitched as she saw the poor, defenseless creature wobble after his master, but she bit her lip. This was her last moment with Ron, Harry, and Ginny for three months. She would not let someone like Draco Malfoy ruin it.

"We've wasted enough time on these ruffians." Draco disappeared into the wand makers shop with the house-elf in tow.

Ron started to shout after him, "If we're ruffians I don't even wanna know what you -" but Hermione put her finger to his lips.

"Ron, don't," she said sternly. "Just kiss me one more time before I have to go."  
>"But, Hermione, he had a suitcase. You don't think –"<p>

"Ron!" she snapped.

He immediately shut up and kissed her. It was only a quick one, since she was already running extremely late.

"Goodbye Ron," she said, lingering in his arms for one final moment, breathing in the sweet smell of his tousled red hair. "I love you," she whispered into his ear before finally pulling away. Grabbing her suitcase from his hand, Hermione walked backwards towards the shops door.

"Goodbye Hermione," said Ron. "Owl me every day. _Twice_ a day!"

"I will," she laughed.

As she walked through the door to Ollivander's shop, Hermione told herself it didn't bother her that Ron didn't say he loved her back. But really, it did.

Inside the shop Mr. Ollivander was standing behind his counter while two young wizards and a witch sat in uncomfortable looking chairs on the other side. One was Draco Malfoy. No surprise there.

"Ah, Hermione Granger. Glad you could join us," said Mr. Ollivander, blatantly staring at the clock on the wall. "Please, take a seat."

"Sorry I'm late, Mr. Ollivander. It won't happen again," she swore, tucking into her seat like she was still in school.

Draco rolled his eyes. She was just as big of a brownnoser as he remembered.

"Yes, I suspect you won't," he said coyly.

Mr. Ollivander paused to stroke his chin. Hermione took this moment to inspect the other two people. One was a pretty raven-haired witch she immediately recognized as a former student of Beauxbatons Academy. She had been one of hopefuls during the Triwizard Tournament but, of course, she had lost to Hermione's future sister-in-law, Fleur. She had never seen the wizard before. He looked a bit older, maybe in his late twenties, and was as hard as a rock, from his well-sculpted muscles to his iron-thick head. He wasn't bad looking - quite the contrary actually - just a bit intimidating.

Which then brought her to Draco. His hair was longer than the last time she had seen him and falling loose, making his face look slightly less pointed. His eyes were as fierce and gray as ever, but slightly sunken, only magnifying the coldness behind him. Like the wizard rock sitting beside him, Draco Malfoy had become hard over the years. Only not on the outside. Though, the outside wasn't looking so bad either.

"So, first, let me start by saying welcome," said Mr. Ollivander, holding his hands out in a friendly gesture. "Second, I will need you all to sign this confidentiality agreement before we discuss anything." He rolled an extremely large parchment out in front of them. "Make sure to read it carefully, now. If there is anything you cannot agree to I am sorry to say that this will be the end of our time together."

The four of them perused Mr. Ollivander's giant parchment. Almost immediately the witch from Beauxbatons protested. "Only one owl 'ome a week? Zat ees absurd!" she proclaimed with wide, green eyes.

Hermione was amazed at how much she sounded like Fleur. Maybe it was a French thing.

"That is the rule. And I will be screening all of your owls to make sure you don't give any information away on your location. This is a top-secret, covert job."

"Like James Bond," said Hermione, smiling. The others stared at her blankly. Her cheeks flushed a bright fuchsia as she looked back to the parchment.

"No one must know where you're going or what you're doing," continued Ollivander, as if there had been no interruptions.

"Mr. Ollivander," said the unnamed wizard raising an assertive hand. "What exactly _are_ we doing?" he asked before ever being called upon. Hermione was appalled. She would never show such disrespect in front of a teacher – and then she remembered they weren't in school anymore. His raising of the hand was a habit, not a formality.

"Ah, my dear boy. I will tell you that … just as soon as you sign the parchment. And don't worry, Ms. Granger. There are no jinx's placed on it," said Mr. Ollivander, looking coyly at Hermione. She giggled as she remembered the vision of Marietta Edgecombe with the word 'sneak' sprawled in spots across her forehead after she betrayed the DA. But how did Mr. Ollivander know about that?

Draco was the first one to take a quill from Ollivander and sign the parchment. Hermione watched him curiously, knowing that he couldn't possibly have finished reading the entire parchment in that short amount of time. She wondered how he had even gotten this job. The ad had said Mr. Ollivander was looking for the best and the brightest. Draco was neither of those things.

Feeling her eyes on him, Draco tilted his head and gave her a wide grin before finishing his signature with a loopy 'y'.

The other wizard immediately took the quill from him. His penmanship was next to chicken scratch, but Hermione could just make out the name Phillip. His last name was completely illegible, though her guess was that it started with a 'c'.

The Beauxbatons witch was still focused on the line about the owls. It was a long minute before she huffed, took the quill from Phillip, and signed her name. Sophie Labelle wrote her name in beautiful, slanted letters. Her hand moved with such graceful ease it was hard not to stare.

When she was done, Sophie shoved the quill into Hermione's hand before she could even reach for it. Taking one last moment to read about their weekly allowances, Hermione gave in to the pressuring looks and signed her name.

Once the last name was on the parchment, Ollivander rolled it back up and put it behind the counter.

"Now then. Down to business. While most of you have probably noticed, I am no longer the ripe young wizard I once was."

Draco chuckled. That was putting it mildly.

Ignoring Draco's rude outburst, Ollivander continued. "For the last few years I have been hiring young witches and wizards, like all of you, to go out and acquire the materials I need to make my wands."

They all gasped, none louder than Hermione. Whatever it was she was expecting when she took this job it wasn't this. She immediately raised her hand. Draco scoffed. She ignored him and waited for Ollivander to call on her.

"Yes, Ms. Granger?"

"What materials do you mean, exactly? The woods you use or …" she gulped … "or the _other_ materials you use in the core of your wands?"

"Both," he said brightly. "I will start you all out small, of course. The four of you will work together for the first month collecting mainly woods. Depending on your progress, I might give you something more challenging before you divide."

Hermione's hand immediately shot back in the air, but before she could speak Sophie beat her to it. "Why us four?" she asked, glancing sideways at Hermione, who put her hand down.

"I chose you four for the unique characteristics you each bring to the table. Ms. Granger's brains. Mr. Prior's brawn." It seemed Hermione had been wrong about the 'c'. "Ms. Labelle's –"

"Beauty," finished Draco with a swift wink at Sophie. While she tried to play it coy, Hermione was not blind to the witch's subtle smirk.

"Actually, I was going to say stealth," said Ollivander, without missing a beat.

"I was ze fastest Chaser on my school's Queeditch team," she boasted, her nose held high in the air. Hermione was not impressed, but Draco seemed to be.

"And Mr. Malfoy's –"

"_Charm_," said Hermione, only being half-facetious.

Draco gave her a toothy grin. "How you flatter me, Granger."

"No, cunning," finished Ollivander. "You each exhibit a strong characteristic necessary to complete this task. It would be nice to find someone who is all four, but I'm afraid Harry Potter did not apply for the position."

Draco cringed. Even Hermione flinched a little. Harry was her best friend, so she would never speak ill of him, but calling him brainy, brawny, stealth, _and_ cunning was a bit of a stretch.

Once Ollivander was done answering Sophie's question, Hermione raised her hand again. "Yes, Ms. Granger?"

"You mentioned earlier how we would be dividing after a month together. Does that mean we will all be working individually after that?" She hoped so. One month with Draco was more than enough.

"Oh, Merlin, no," he laughed. "None of you will _ever_ be working individually. At that point I will be dividing you into pairs as I best see suited. But, judging from what I know of you all, it will probably be Ms. Labelle and Mr. Prior, and you and Mr. Malfoy."

"WHAT?" shouted both Hermione and Draco, jumping out of their seats.

"Mr. Ollivander, you can't be serious!" she said.

"Oh, yes, I am quite serious, Ms. Granger. Ms. Labelle and Mr. Prior have worked together previously with successful results, and you and Mr. Malfoy were in the same year at the same school. Surely you had to work together at some point during your academic careers."

"Only in detention during our first year," said Draco, "and even _then_ we were separated."

"Brains and cunning are mental while brawn and stealth are physical. You can't put both mental _and_ both physical together," she said rationally. "They need to be divided and utilized."

"Or bunched together to play on your personal talents. Do you expect Ms. Labelle to grab you and run when your brains fail to capture a dragon?"

_Dragons_? Hermione felt faint.

"That is just not smart thinking. You'll want someone with you who can formulate a plan," he said. "But these pairings aren't set in stone. If you really can't work together then prove it to me. But _not_ by effecting the sanctity of the mission. Any of that and you will both be out."

"But, Mr. Ollivander, why is Malfoy here, anyway? He _cannot_ be trusted. You know this just as well as I do, if not better," said Hermione, crossing her arms.

Ollivander's eyes hazed over as he returned to the dark time he had once spent in Malfoy Manor. Hermione immediately regretted what she'd said. The last thing she wanted was to send him back to that horrible place, even if it was only in his mind. Merlin knew she hated going there.

"What do you know of it, Mudblood?"

Hermione looked at Draco. He had the fiercest scowl she had ever seen spread across his face.

"Mr. Malfoy, there will be _none_ of that language here!" shouted Ollivander, finally returning to the here-and-now. Draco's face immediately eased, his eyes dropping to the floor. "Now, Ms. Granger, even someone as smart as you would be wise to know that a lot can change in three years. Mr. Malfoy was just as much a victim of the war as you and I were. You do not know the horrors he witnessed and vice versa. But, if the two of you _absolutely_ cannot work together, since Mr. Malfoy is here voluntarily, it is you I will have to let go." Hermione's heart sank. "The choice is yours. I suggest you make it now, and stop wasting all of our time. You are not a student anymore. You are an adult and will be treated as such."

Hermione did not answer right away. She took a good look at Draco. The boy who had once stood so proudly with his nose held high, confident of his own blood and superiority, was the same boy who stood here now, slouched with shame-filled eyes cast to the floor, his pointed face hidden behind a shaggy mop of hair. It was true. A lot _could_ change in three years.

"I want to stay," said Hermione under her breath. Draco looked up at her. She immediately blushed. He winked.

"What was that, Ms. Granger?"

"I want to stay," she said much louder this time. "I apologize for my rude behave –"

"Brownnosing will get you nowhere with me, Ms. Granger," said Ollivander. "Both of you, please take your seats. We have a lot to cover and a lot less time to do it in."

Hermione sat down, taking a parchment and quill out of her bag so she could take proper notes, all the while glancing sideways at the blonde wizard who was also glancing sideways at her.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hi all! Sorry this chapter is a bit short but my second chapter was really long so I split it in two. I know the riddles are a little weak so any criticism is greatly appreciated!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It all belongs to JK Rowling.**

**P.S. The character, Great Uncle Stabilius Malfoy, is not my own. It was created by Scarlet (aka superscar) and she was nice enough to let me use it. If you want to learn more about him visit chapter 19 of the Harry Potter fanfic 'Hermione Malfoy'.**

**New A/N: Edited**

"We're lost," said Draco as they came across the same rock shaped like a giant head of a warty hag for the fourth time.

"Yes, Draco, thank you for stating the obvious, _once_ _again_," said Hermione.

"Do not get on 'im," snapped Sophie. "You are ze brains. One might zink you would know 'ow to read a map!"

"As I recall, Sophie, it was your map reading skills that got us lost in the first place," said Phillip, speaking for the first time in almost three hours. Hermione was glad that when he did speak he was on her side. Merlin knew she was getting enough badgering from Draco and Sophie.

"Eet was not my fault! Ze entire zing ees een reeddles."

"He's testing us," said Hermione.

"Now who's stating the obvious?" said Draco, taking a seat on the ground against the large rock.

It was true. Before they left Ollivander told them their first mission would be a test, just to make sure they were up for the challenging summer ahead.

"What are you doing?" she asked, glaring down at him. "We need to keep moving."

"Why? It's not like we're getting anywhere. Everyone deserves a break, Granger. Even someone as uptight as you." Draco closed his eyes and placed both hands comfortably behind his head.

"Ugh, _finally_," said Sophie, throwing down her backpack. "I am going to ze reever we saw a leettle ways back to fill our caneesters." She grabbed the canisters hanging from all of their belts and marched off into the forest.

"I better go with her," said Phillip. "Leaving her alone just sounds like a disaster waiting to happen." He ran after her. It was obvious he didn't really believe she wasn't fully capable of getting water. He just wanted to get away from the bickering former schoolmates. Hermione couldn't blame him; even though she was secretly offended he thought Sophie was better company than her.

It had already been a day since Ollivander had explained their task, given them backpacks to repack all of their belongings, and sent them through the Floo network to a wizard town in the center of the Black Forest in Germany. He wanted them to get him a branch from this specific fir, in this specific spot, at this specific time. If they didn't find the tree within the next hour it would be a day until they could try again.

"This doesn't make any sense," said Hermione, taking a seat on a log opposite the rock, staring closely at the map.

"Did you say something, Granger?" asked Draco, opening one eye to look at her.

"No, Malfoy, not to you," she muttered.

"Well, I'm the only one here," he said, opening his other eye. "Don't tell me you've gone mental and started talking to yourself. Word of advice, if someone starts talking back you definitely have a problem."

"Someone's talking back right now, actually. And yes, I agree. It's a problem."

"Read it to me."

"Read what to you?"

"The entire volume of _Hogwarts: A History_ verbatim, since I'm sure it's molded somewhere into that bushy head of yours."

She scowled at him.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Read me the bloody map, Granger. Honestly."

After flaring her nostrils a few more times, Hermione looked back down at the map and read, "_Follow your woes to where your greatest fear grows. Put the breadcrumbs away, head to her sweet house, but don't stay. Or else the old witch will come out to play. But don't worry, she'll always point you the way._"

This was, basically, the entire map. While there was the occasional line swerving here and there to indicate pathways, this lone riddle was written beside a childishly drawn patch of trees to guide them in the right direction. Two other patches of trees indicated that two other riddles would appear once they solved the first. A big, red X marked the hypothetical spot at the end of the trail, but it kept moving. Essentially, the map was worthless.

"Hmm," said Draco, pondering what she had just read. "Sophie was right."

"About what?" she asked.

"About the map. It _is_ in riddles. And here I thought she was just making excuses for getting us lost in a gigantic Muggle forest in a foreign country. Fancy that."

"Don't be a smartass, Malfoy. We need to figure this map out before we're stuck in this forest for the rest of the summer."

"You mean _you_ need to figure the map out. My part hasn't come up yet."

"What does that mean?"

"Oh, _come on_, Granger," he said, leaning forward and looking her in the eye. "You're the one that said it. He's _testing_ us. To make sure he chose the right blokes for the job. You're brains, I'm cunning, Sophie's stealth and that _beast_ of a wizard is brawn."

"That beast of a wizard's name is Phillip," spat Hermione.

Draco raised his eyebrows. "Don't tell me you fancy him, Granger? You'll break poor Weasley's heart," he said with a 'cunning' grin.

"I _don't_ fancy him. And even if I did it doesn't matter. Ron and I aren't together."

"And I suppose that was the two of you _not_ being together outside of Ollivander's shop? I'd hate to see what together is like."

"We're on a break," she said defensively, though she was still unsure why she was even mentioning it.

"A break?" repeated Draco. He was positive he must have heard her wrong.

"Yes. A break. For the summer."

Draco blinked. They stared at each other during what must have been the loudest silence either of them had ever encountered.

After a moment, Draco pursed his eyebrows and slowly said, "While I find myself mildly intrigued by the terms of this 'break', as you call it, I feel I must be the responsible one here and point you back towards the map. We have at least a month to discuss what went wrong in Weaselville. No point in wasting those five minutes of _pleasant_ conversation when we should be working on another task."

He didn't have to tell her twice. Hermione was already back on the map. She couldn't help but feel there was something familiar about the riddle. Especially the breadcrumbs. Where had she heard that before? Breadcrumbs …

Hermione twirled a piece of stray hair around her finger while staring blankly at the rock in front of her. The rock … shaped like a hag … or a Muggle witch.

"The _witch_!" she shouted pointing at the rock. "I'm so stupid."

"That's what I've always said." Draco grinned.

There was no time to retaliate, since it was already running thin. "No, Malfoy, the rock. The rock is shaped like a witch."

Draco stood up and moved to her side, putting both hands on his hips as he took in the sight of the rock. "Looks more like my Great Uncle Stabilius."

"It's a girl witch, Malfoy."

"Don't tell Uncle Stabby that. His name is a pretty good depiction of his character."

Hermione rolled her eyes. She didn't have time for this. "And this rock is a pretty good depiction of a Muggle witch. Crooked nose, sagging skin, warts all over."

"Sounds more like Professor Dumbledore."

Hermione smacked Draco hard across the arm. She might let him get away with a lot of things, but making a snarky comment towards the late Professor Dumbledore was not one of them.

"It is a _Muggle_ depiction of a witch and Ollivander's riddles are referring to a _Muggle_ fairytale. It is called _Hansel and Gretel_ and it takes place in the Black Forest. I spent so much time reading _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_ during the war I almost forgot about the stories from my own childhood."

"Okay, so what do this 'Hanick and Gretick' do in the Black Forest?" asked Draco.

"_Hansel and Gretel_," she corrected. "They got lost after the birds ate their trail of breadcrumbs leading home, and ended up at a witch's gingerbread house where she tried to fatten them up and eat them."

Draco's brow furrowed as he stared over at her inquisitively. "Muggle fairytale's sure are twisted," he said.

Hermione ignored him. "So what do you think she uses to point us the way, since she has no hands?"

"I could tell you what Uncle Stabby would use." He laughed.

She ignored him again. "I suppose it would have to be her nose, since it is the only pointed part of her." Hermione took out her wand and cast a spell so it would work like a compass. "Looks like the nose points southeast. I suggest we start by heading that way."

"'Ave you two feegured somezing out?" asked Sophie, stepping back into the clearing. She was staring at Hermione's floating wand.

"I solved the first riddle," bragged Draco.

"_I _solved the first riddle," corrected Hermione.

"Zat ees amazing. What deed eet say, Draco?" asked Sophie as she dotingly clipped his canteen back onto his belt.

Hermione threw her hands up in defeat. She didn't know how he did it.

"It was easy, actually. The riddle was referring to a Muggle fairytale called _Hansy and Gretty_ –"

"_Hansel and Gretel_," corrected Hermione, _again._

"Right, that. Anyway, two Muggle children get lost in the woods –"

"I believe you."

Hermione nearly jumped out of her skin. She hadn't even realized how incredibly close Phillip was standing until he whispered in her ear.

"Thank you, Phillip," she said, taking a step back. "I appreciate that."

Refilling the gap, Phillip reached down and clipped a canteen to Hermione's belt, breathing heavily on her cheek. She stood completely frozen, afraid that if she moved he might touch her by accident. Once the canteen was in place he smiled at her and said, "Lead the way, Captain."

Putting her floating wand in the palm of her hand, Hermione started heading to the southeast. Everyone else followed.

The trees were incredibly thick in this part of the forest, which was part of the reason why they had avoided it in the first place. When they had only been walking for a few minutes, Sophie began to complain. It was too dark. The brush was too thick. Her designer boots were getting scratches on them. Her hair was getting tangled. "_Draco_, carry me."

After he let her climb onto his back she shut up. For once, Hermione was grateful for what Draco Malfoy had to offer.

"What are we looking for, exactly," asked Phillip after several more minutes had passed.

"I think we're looking for a house made of sweets," answered Hermione.

"Or a sweet house," said Draco.

"What's the difference?" she asked, turning back and sneering at him.

He pointed in front of her. "I think the sweet house once sold sweets, but not anymore."

She turned and immediately frowned. He was right. There was a beat-up old shack several yards in front of them with a tattered sign over the doorway that read '_Sweet House_'. She had been so busy looking at her wand-compass that she hadn't even noticed it jump out in front of her.

"So ees ze weetch going to come out and play now?" asked Sophie, giggling as she hugged even tighter onto Draco's neck. He laughed. So did Phillip. Hermione wouldn't give her the satisfaction.

"Actually, aye prefer hag or spinster."

The voice made them all jump. Draco was so startled he forgot to hold onto Sophie, who ended up falling off of his back and into the brush. Hermione wanted to laugh but she was too busy trying to hide her floating wand.

"No need fer that, deary. I know what ye are," said the strange, old woman standing in the doorway of the Sweet House. She had long, unkempt, silver hair, a crooked nose, a body covered in warts, and hollow eyes. She was the perfect depiction of a Muggle witch, minus the green skin. "What aye don' know is who sent ye?"

"Well, zis ees a waste of time," said Sophie, climbing back to her feet and brushing herself off. "Olleevander clearly said ze weetch –"

"Garrick Ollivander?" the old woman asked. They all looked at each other. None of them knew the answer. "The wand maker?"

"Yeeessss," they all said in unison. Finally, they were getting somewhere.

"Did that ol' fool give ye a riddle leading ye'all here?"

"Yes he did," Hermione answered, "Mrs. … uhh …"

"Jus' call me Ginger."

"Okay … Ginger," said Hermione through gritted teeth. It was really hard to call this woman a name like that when she was the polar opposite of how Hermione pictured _anyone_ named Ginger.

"Ees your last name bread?" laughed Sophie. Ginger stared back at her coldly. She immediately shut her mouth.

"Ginger, if I might inquire," said Draco, stepping forward. "You haven't ever met someone named Stabilius Malfoy, have you?"

Hermione wanted to hit him! But she refrained … for now.

"Oh, Stabby, the ol' fart. He 'n aye go way back. Aye mighta even married the bloke if he wasn' so damn ugly. Why d'ye ask?"

"Oh, no reason," said Draco, fighting back a smile. He could just picture how hideous their children would have been. It was a blessing to all that the two of them never reproduced.

"Enough chitchat, let me see the next riddle," said Ginger, skipping forward.

"I guess ze witch does want to play. And 'ere I zought we were not supposed to stay." Sophie's joke was received with another cold stare. She sucked her lips in tight.

Hermione pulled out the map and held it so she and Ginger could both read it. Draco, Phillip and Sophie all came over and stood around it.

"Ah, yes, there aye am," said Ginger, pointing to the first riddle. The moment she touched it the second one appeared slightly to the southeast of the first.

Hermione read aloud, "_The witch will talk your ear off folks, but don't give up, you're getting close. While rain and earth make mush and mud, the path will show with dirty blood._"

"Mudblood!" shouted Draco, pointing at Hermione. Sophie gasped and started pointing too. They both repeated, "Mudblood!"

"Let her finish, Draco," scolded Phillip.

Hermione rolled her eyes and continued with the riddle. "_Follow the trail till it grows cold. Hiccups and vials and webbing and mold._"

"You 'eard eet 'Ermione. Give me your 'and." Sophie pulled a blade out of nowhere and held it up. Hermione's eyes went wide as she backed away.

"It's all a bit cryptic ain't it?" said Ginger.

"Yes," agreed Phillip. "I think that line was put in there to throw us off. Mr. Ollivander would never refer to a Muggle-born as having dirty blood. He's half Muggle himself, you know."

"Then what –"

"Oh ho. Garrick, ye bad boy. I know what ye mean."

"What does he mean?" asked Hermione, though she was already getting a pretty disturbing image.

"He's talkin' 'bout my blood," said Ginger with her own cryptic grin. Trying to look anywhere but at the old woman, Hermione accidentally locked eyes with Draco. He smirked and winked at her. She couldn't help but smirk back.

"Okay zen. Give me your 'and," said Sophie, moving her blade towards Ginger.

"Aye'll do it meself, thanks." Ginger took the blade from her, looking half-afraid that Sophie might stab her with it anyway. Hermione wouldn't put it past her. "Now, where am aye suppose' to drop me blood?"

That was a good question. Hermione looked back to the map. "It says the path will show with dir – with blood." Maybe if she avoided the word 'dirty' the haunting image would leave her thoughts.

"Eet ees obvious! Drip your blood on ze mud!" demanded Sophie, pointing to a patch of mud just beside them. Unfortunately, this wasn't the only mud around. In a forest as enclosed as this, it was next to impossible for the wet earth to ever dry.

Hermione shook her head. "No. I don't think so. We don't know which way the path is, and with all this mud around we'd end up draining Ginger dry."

"Zen what do you suggest!" Sophie sneered at her. Hermione was starting to think that her company was even more intolerable than Draco's. Hopefully, when they were split into two she would be paired with Phillip. He was the only one who seemed even remotely bearable. Though, he clearly had some boundary issues.

"Why don't we try putting some of her blood on the map? That seems harmless."

Ginger used the blade to open a small cut on the tip of her finger. She squeezed it over the map, dropping several spots of blood just below the second riddle. They all waited. Nothing happened.

"Now what?" asked Phillip, looking at Hermione hopefully.

When Hermione didn't answer, Sophie took the blade back from Ginger and said, "You are going to need a bigger gash."

The old witch took several steps back.

"No!" yelled Hermione. "Hold on, Sophie. I just need a minute to figure this out."

"By my count, we only have twenty," said Draco, showing her the face of his father's old pocket watch.

"Oooh. Come on Hermione. Think. Think," she said while tapping her head.

"She talks to herself a lot," whispered Draco to Sophie. The two of them smirked at each other.

Hermione tuned them out. Why hadn't the map worked? Surely there was some magical way to – "Of course!" she shouted as if she'd been thinking out loud. Taking her wand back out, Hermione pointed it at the map and said, "_Specialis Revelio_."

The map suddenly came alive. Complete with real trees, a path in red ink, and miniature versions of themselves walking about.

"Brilliant!" shouted Phillip, putting an arm around Hermione and squeezing. She smiled uncomfortably before slyly ducking out of his grasp.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: The second half of their first mission. Any constructive criticism is greatly appreciated! Hope you all enjoy!**

**Also I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

**New A/N: Edited**

"Let's get a move on," she said, following the little Hermione on the map towards the red line. "Thank you for your help, Ginger!" She turned and waved at the witch before moving through the trees to find their path. The forest was so lush here she might as well have been climbing through a solid wall, yet, somehow, she managed it with only minor cuts and bruises. And then, right in front of her, was a bright-red path. "Seriously?"

Someone crashed into her from behind and she fell to the ground. She could hear the echoing sound of Draco's laughter. "Sorry about that, Granger. Maybe next time – Oomph!"

Draco crashed to the ground in similar style as Phillip came barreling through the thick trees. He fell on top of Hermione, who had been in mid-turn while getting up, leaving them to land face-to-face. Their foreheads bonked.

"Ow!" they both cried out.

"Oops. Sorry," said Phillip. "Let me help." He grabbed Draco by the shoulders and threw him off of Hermione. Then he held his hand out and pulled her up from the ground.

Once Hermione was on her feet, Sophie sprang through the trees and straight into Phillip, causing a ripple effect where he fell forward, whipping Hermione out of the way so she wouldn't fall with him, coincidentally throwing her right into Draco's arms. The two of them tried to catch their balance but eventually toppled over … again. This time with Hermione on top.

There was another forehead bonk. "Ow!"

"'Ermione! Do not act so desperate! You 'ave to play 'ard to get!" said Sophie, throwing Hermione off of Draco and holding a hand out to help him to his feet.

Once they were all finally balanced, Hermione did a quick brush of her hair and led them on their way.

Time was running even thinner now so the four of them walked at a hurried pace.

When they reached the end of the red path they were standing in a clearing. The four of them stopped walking and looked around. It was completely empty.

"What are we looking for exactly? Somezing cold?" asked Sophie.

"No. The trail goes cold," answered Hermione. "Now we're supposed to find something with hiccups and vials."

"And webbing and mold," finished Draco. They all looked around the clearing again. Nothing. "Bloody brilliant."

"Ooh! Berries!" Sophie ran over to a big bush of berries on the far end of the clearing. "Great. I am starving!" Before any of them could protest, she stuffed a big bundle of red berries into her mouth. Hopefully they weren't poisonous. Though, secretly, Hermione wished they were.

"So what now, Granger?" asked Draco as he walked slowly around the clearing, looking both high and low.

"How should I know?"

"_Brains_. Remember?" he said, pointing to his noggin.

"Yes, yes. I remember. _Brains. Cunning. Brawn. Stealth._ We-get-it-Malfoy!"

"Don't get mad it me just because you can't do your part!" he yelled, moving so he was directly in front of her, staring intensely.

"Don't belittle me because I'm the only one who can solve a damn riddle!" She lunged forward and stared right back at him.

"_Me_ belittle _you_? You've been belittling me since the moment we started this damn excursion!"

"Have not!"

"Have to!"

_Hiccup!_

"Have you two always fought like this?"

"NO!" they both roared at Phillip, but without taking their eyes off of each other.

"You've never forgiven me for something that was out of my control!" shouted Draco, his gray eyes turning stone-cold.

"You had control!" she shouted back at him. "For _seven_ years you had control! But you were always all talk and no bite! How can I forgive someone who took no action, even after they realized what they were doing was wrong?"

_Hiccup! _"Uhh … guys …"

"How could I do that when bloody You-Know-Who was living in my home? I didn't want to die, Granger! And I sure as hell didn't want my parents to die!"

_Hiccup! _"_Guys!_ I 'ave ze 'iccups! Ze berries gave me ze 'iccups!" Hermione and Draco turned to see Sophie waving her arms at them.

Phillip was standing right next to them, watching with one hand on his chin while the two of them fought. When they both looked at him he put a hand on each of their shoulders and said, "I think we've made a lot of progress today, but Sophie has the hiccups, so I suggest we get a move on." He started to walk towards Sophie, but turned around after only two steps and added, "And perhaps we should try for less animosity next time, since it can even make someone as pretty as Hermione look ugly."

Hermione blushed. When the two of them went to follow him, Draco leaned in and whispered, "I think he wants to snog you."

Before they even reached Sophie - who had been searching through the bushes – she let out a loud yip and immediately ran into Draco's arms. "Eet ees 'orrible! Just 'orrible!"

Hermione rolled her eyes. So much for Sophie playing hard to get.

Leaving the two of them alone, Hermione joined Phillip at the bushes. "What is it?" she asked.

Phillip laughed. "It looks like Sophie wasn't completely wrong about finding something cold." He moved the bushes aside, revealing an old skeleton.

"Eww," said Hermione, taking a step back.

"It gets better," he said, pulling out the dead man's – or woman's – pouch and handing it to her. She opened it and found several vials full of mold samples.

"You see? _Mold_. Eet ees absolutely 'orrible!"

"Is that why you were screaming?" asked Hermione. "A skeleton won't frighten you, but closed vials of harmless mold do the trick?" She laughed while waving the bag of mold samples in front of Sophie's face. The witch hid her head even deeper into Draco's shoulder. Even he couldn't help but laugh.

"What about the webbing?" Hermione gave up her game and turned back to Phillip.

"Well, there's a huge spider web behind the skeleton, if that's what you mean," he said, climbing out of the bush. "Did the next riddle appear?"

Hermione looked at the map and saw that it hadn't. Stretching it far out in front of her, she tried to touch the map to the skeleton's fingers. After a few missed attempts, Phillip stuck his hand back into the bush, lifted the skeletons fingers and touched them to the map. The final riddle appeared.

Without skipping a beat, Hermione read: "_Follow the web spun all around the bend, your blood, sweat, and tears will be worth it in the end_."

"_Hiccup!_"

Hermione huffed. "Are you _still_ doing that?"

"I am sorry! I ate a lot of berries!"

Shaking her head, she continued, "_Don't forget to follow your nose, where the aroma peaks, the fir tree grows. Make sure you find it before the sun sets, or else you'll be trapped in the darkest of nets._" That was it. The end of the riddle. A path of webs appeared on the map but the big red X kept moving about. Hermione was strangely disappointed. "Well, that's not much of a riddle. We just follow the web and then some smell and we're there, right?"

No one dared to nod, since they were all well aware that it would not be that simple.

"_Hiccup_!"

With Phillip leading the way, the four of them walked around the bush and began following the long web behind it. It stretched far and wide, high and low, twisting left and right, and sometimes round and round. There was absolutely no end in sight. Even through the thick trees they could still see the sun was setting. Time was running out.

And then they smelled it. The mouthwatering aroma of maple and honey. With all of their hollow stomachs – except Sophie's, which was full of berries – the scent was almost too much to bear. But they went on. With only seven minutes left the tree and its branch was finally in their grasp.

Following the scent instead of the webs, the four of them finally came to a clearing, and from it they could see their fir tree on a small isle, just past a deep ledge. Another dilemma.

Hermione looked down to the map and saw that the red X had finally stopped moving. This really was the spot. She was just about to step forward when Draco pulled her back. "Hold on a minute, Granger. One problem at a time."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

He pointed in front of her. She looked and saw that she had almost walked right into a giant spider web. She gasped. That would have been most unfortunate, not to mention embarrassing.

Sophie used her blade – once again, pulled out from nowhere – to cut through the web. They all walked over to the edge of the ravine. Hermione looked down into the black abyss and laughed. "Well, _cunning_, you're up."

"Thank you, _brains_. I realize that."

_Tick. Tick. Tick._

"Deed you 'ear somezing?" asked Sophie.

_TICK. TICK. TICK._

"I did now," said Phillip.

They all turned. Just inside of the opening they'd made in the forest were a million giant spiders descending from the trees. Hermione looked to the sun. It had just disappeared from the horizon.

"AHH!" they all screamed.

The four of them took out their wands and immediately starting blasting spells at the spiders, but nothing hit them. It was like they were absorbing their magic.

"Magic resistant spiders. Oh ho, you are brilliant, old man," Draco said to the sky, presumably speaking to Ollivander. "My guess is this is where brawn comes in." He reached into his bag and pulled out a blade twice the size of Sophie's, and handed it to Phillip. "Get to it."

"Are you serious?"

"Better you than me." He grinned.

Phillip rolled his eyes but didn't argue. He ran to the opening and started killing any spider that tried to crawl through. It was rather gruesome. Hermione had never been more grateful to have intelligence over prowess.

"Now that that's settled, does anyone see a vine of any sort, or anything rope-like?"

"A vine? Where do you zink we are, ze amazon?"

Hermione was already rummaging through her backpack, making several loud clunks as she did so.

"What do you 'ave een zere? A metal shop?"

"No. I have this," she said, pulling out a long rope. "Will this do?"

"Uh … yeah," said Draco, looking at her curiously as he took the rope from her. There was no time for questions now, but he would certainly have them later.

He ran over to the nearest tree and tied one end of the rope to it, using his wand to make sure it was secure. Then he ran over to Sophie and tied the other end to her waist.

"What are you doing?" she asked, her eyes widening.

"You are going to use your stealth to run and jump across the ravine. Then you are going to tie your end of the rope to the tree so Granger and I can climb across."

"Can we not just 'Accio Branch' and call eet a day?"

While Hermione wanted to mock her for being so stupid, she was not ignorant to the fact that this was the exact type of question Ron would ask. So, in her calmest voice, she answered, "If we did that successfully, the whole tree would fly out of the ground. Do you really want a tree flying at you?"

Sophie huffed at her. She walked to the farthest end of the clearing, ran as fast as she could, and leapt through the air and across the ravine. Her foot scraped the edge as she landed on the other side but, luckily, she fell forward and not back.

Climbing to her feet, Sophie ran to the tree and tied her end of the rope to it. Once it was secure with a spell she went to the edge of the isle, faced the tree, and ran and jumped to the nearest branch, which was three whole heads above her. Once she had pulled herself up and was straddling it she, again, took out her blade and started cutting.

Draco let Hermione go first while he went back and helped an overwhelmed Phillip. Once she was on the other side she called to him. He hurried back to the rope and followed her across.

Hermione ran just beneath the branch, pointed her wand at herself and said, "_Wingardium Leviosa_." She floated up until she was head to head with Sophie in the tree, took out her own knife, and started cutting.

"Oh, _sure_. Eef you want to be fancy about eet," she scoffed.

"Actually, I thought your way was a bit fancy. But if I tried to jump like that I'd only embarrass myself." Sophie laughed, to Hermione's relief. Maybe there was hope for them yet.

Suddenly, Draco floated up beside them. "Great idea, Granger. I was wondering how the hell we were going to get up here."

Sophie scowled as Draco paid Hermione this compliment. Hermione frowned. So much for their budding friendship.

Not noticing, or caring about the rift between the witches, Draco added, "Unless you have a broom stuffed in that backpack of yours."

Hermione blushed. She did, in fact, have a broom somewhere in her bag. Being so blindly unaware of what her job entailed, she had packed for all scenarios.

Once the branch was only a couple hairs away from tearing, Draco told them to stop. Hermione held the branch up so it would not snap. "We need to time this just right," he said, taking out his father's old pocket watch. "Oh. Perfect. Sophie, get ready to make the final cut." She prepared her blade. "In five, four, three, two, one!"

On that count Sophie sliced the last bit of the branch, causing Hermione, and it, to fall backwards. Draco grabbed her hand. She continued to fall towards the ground, pulling him along with her, but it was much slower now.

Once they landed, Sophie jumped out of the tree and pointed across the ravine. "Look! Ze spiders are still coming! Should zey not 'ave stopped?"

Hermione and Draco both turned to see Phillip still battling hundreds of spiders, which were no longer confined to the inside of the forest. They were crawling freely all throughout the clearing. Phillip was in way over his head.

"Apparently not," said Draco. "Phillip!" he called across the ravine. Phillip didn't hear him.

"PHILLIP!" they all called together. Nothing.

"Sophie, you're going to have to jump back over there and apparate him to the village we arrived at. Granger and I will meet you there," said Draco.

Sophie looked at him with sappy eyes and a quivering bottom lip. "I – I cannot!" she said.

"Why not?" asked Hermione. "We'll make sure the branch gets there safely."

"Eet ees not ze branch!" she shouted. "I cannot apparate! I do not 'ave a license!"

Hermione and Draco both gasped.

"You don't have a license?" repeated Draco. Sophie nodded. "Then how the bloody hell did you get this job? One of the requirements was knowing how to apparate!"

"I know 'ow to apparate! I just neglected to mention I never got around to getting my license!"

"Then just do it," said Draco. "No one will know."

Hermione gasped. She already knew Draco was a daft prick, but she _never_ would have believed he had such a blatant disregard for the rules.

"She shouldn't take that risk, Malfoy. Here, take the branch," she said, shoving it into his hands. "I'll go back for Phillip. You just worry about getting the liar back to the village."

"I deed not lie, 'Ermione!"

Hermione wasn't listening. She was already heading for the rope. Right when she reached out to grab it, someone seized her wrist and whipped her back around.

"You really are bloody insane if you think I'm letting you go back over there," said Draco, throwing the branch back in her hands. She didn't even have time to object before he was shimmying across the rope to the other side.

"You can do eet, Draco! Just do not look down!"

Draco could not help but glance below him. Knowing right away that Sophie was doing more harm than good, Hermione grabbed her arm and disapparated the two of them.

When they arrived in the village, Sophie pushed her and shouted, "What are you doing? We should 'ave stayed to make sure zey were all right!"

"They'll be fine!" Hermione shouted right back at her. "But telling someone climbing across a cliff to 'not look down' isn't going to help anyone."

"Ees zat what zis ees about? Jealousy?"

"_What_?" Hermione was appalled. "Absolutely not! Malfoy and I can't stand each other!"

"Ze lady doth protest too much, mezinks," said Sophie.

"What are you talking about? _Learn English_!"

"Eet ees Engleesh! Eet ees Shakespeare, you 'alfwit!"

"I know Shakespeare, but how do _you_ know Shakespeare?"

"My grandmozer was a Muggle. She read eet to me."

"Oh," said Hermione, changing her manner instantly. "So tell me, do you like the comedies, like _Much Ado About Nothing_, or the tragedies, like _Hamlet, _better? Because personally I –"

There was a loud '_Pop!_', and Draco and Phillip appeared with several spiders crawling on their backs. Sophie screamed, pulled her blade out – of nowhere again, yes – and started stabbing at them, all while repeating, "I 'ate spiders! I 'ate spiders!"

Hermione had to stifle a chuckle as the vision of Sophie eating a plate full of spiders entered her head.

The moment the last spider was dead, an owl swooped out of nowhere and took the branch out of Hermione's hand. They all let out a sigh of relief. Their test was finally over.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: My favorite chapter so far :-) Hopefully you guys like it as much as I do.**

**PS: Thanks for all of the positive comments so far!**

**PPS: I have re-uploaded the chapter so it now has the proper sentences in French. Thank you genevieve for correcting it!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

**New A/N: Edited!**

The group celebrated their victory at the local pub with four mugs of hot butterbeer and whiskey. Hermione rejected the alcohol at first, but eventually gave in to the persistent badgering of the other three.

"Cheers!" they all shouted while clanking glasses.

Draco kept his eyes on Hermione as she took her first sip, laughing at the way her face scrunched up when she tasted it. "Why you all insisted on ruining a perfectly good butterbeer with whiskey is beyond me."

"Because eet ees delicious!" said Sophie before chugging half the thing down in one gulp.

"So tell me something, Sophie," said Draco, wiping a bit of foam off the corner of her mouth. "How is it you never got around to getting your Apparition license?"

"I just never deed. I turned seventeen right before school and I 'ad to prepare properly."

Hermione nodded. She understood preparation was very important.

"Zen we went to 'Ogwarts and I 'ad no time zere, zen when I graduated I started working at Zinx immediately."

"Zinx?" asked Draco and Hermione at the same time.

"Thinx," corrected Phillip. "It's where we met. I was her superior."

"Oh, 'ow ze mighty 'ave fallen!" shouted a slightly tipsy Sophie.

Phillip chuckled. "Yes, Soph, because you are my superior now," he scoffed.

"I only meant -"

"I know what you meant," he said, taking a long, hard sip of his drink.

"Did something happen at this, 'Thinx'?" asked Hermione.

"Somezing like zat. Ze whole zing was a political mess." Sophie finished off the last of her butterbeer and raised the empty glass at the barmaid so she would know to bring her another.

After finishing his own drink, Phillip continued. "The Company specialized in creating ways to use Muggle technology in the wizarding world. So Muggle-borns could have an easier way to communicate with their family and friends outside of the wizarding community."

"Oh, that sounds nice," Hermione said with a smile, thinking of how handy it would be to just email her parents instead of sending a suspicious looking owl to their door.

"Eet was nice, until ze owner of ze company died, leaving 'is tyrant son een charge," said Sophie, tapping her empty glass impatiently.

"Zandicus was racist against Muggles, so you can imagine how well that went," said Phillip with a hollow laugh. "Eventually the company went bankrupt and Sophie and I, among many others, were left jobless."

"Eet was awful. I 'ad to move back een wiz my parents. And Phillipe's wife left 'im."

"Thanks, Soph. They really needed to know that," said Phillip, slightly blushing as he glanced at Hermione.

"Do not blame me. Blame ze drink!"

At that moment, the barmaid arrived with four more mugs of butterbeer. Hermione looked at hers questionably. She had barely taken two sips of her first one and already she was starting to feel lightheaded. How was she supposed to drink two?

"So, 'Ermione, what ees eet wiz your backpack?" asked Sophie, already well into her second drink. "Eet sounded like you 'ad an entire circus een zere."

"Yes, Hermione," said Draco, crossing his arms in front of him and giving her a roguish smile. "Do tell us how you managed to fit a fifty foot rope into your backpack. Is that all you packed?"

"No," she said, taking her third sip of her first drink. "I used an Undetectable Extension Charm."

They all looked blankly at her. "I 'ave never 'eard of zat," said Sophie. "What ees eet?"

Hermione smiled. She was more than happy to explain. "I learned it before the war since Harry, Ron, and I had a lot of traveling to do -"

"'Arry Potter?" Sophie practically sang the name. "I forgot zat you knew 'im. Can you introduce me?"

Draco groaned into his drink.

"I suppose I could when this is all said and done," said Hermione. Sophie squealed with delight. "But, I should warn you, he has a fiancée, so no funny business." Hermione wagged her finger at her.

Sophie grinned from ear to ear. "Oh, 'e will not 'ave a fiancée once I am done wiz 'im."

"In that case, no. I will not introduce you."

"Come on, 'Ermione. Pllleeeaasse!"

"No."

"I weell be good. I promeese."

"I said no."

It went on like this for a good five minutes before the girls finally shut up, and that was only because Sophie became more interested in getting her third butterbeer than meeting the famous Harry Potter.

"Could you put an Undetectable Extension Charm on all our packs?" asked Phillip.

Hermione thought about this. "Well, I can certainly try, but the spell is a bit tricky to do. I haven't had much practice over the years, but I managed to put it on both my suitcase and my backpack so I don't see why I couldn't do it again."

Once Hermione was finished with her first drink and Phillip was two more in, he ran back to the inn, cleared out his backpack, brought it back to the pub, and put it on the table for her to charm. As it turns out, conjuring a charm while intoxicated is not the wisest of decisions, and the bag exploded. They all laughed hysterically as Phillip ran his fingers through the dust that was once his backpack.

"I'm glad I took everything out first."

Sophie moved onto Draco's lap and the two of them started whispering in French while he nibbled on her ear. Hermione and Phillip stared at them, both disgusted and mesmerized. It was like an ugly wart they just couldn't turn away from.

"I find myself oddly curious as to what they are saying, yet also wanting to vomit," said Phillip, squinting his eyes like he thought it would make him understand French better.

Hermione, who understood all too well the disgusting things they were cooing at each other, said to him, "Trust me, if you knew, you would vomit."

Phillip chuckled. "Duly noted. So, tell me, Hermione," he said, turning his body towards her, "do you have a boyfriend?"

"Yes," she answered automatically. "I mean no. Well … it's complicated."

"They're on a break," said Draco out of nowhere.

"Oooh. Phillipe, you must strike while ze iron ees 'ot!"

Hermione scowled at both of them. She turned back to Phillip and said, "I'd rather not talk about it. If you don't mind."

"Excuse us," said Draco with a wide grin as he pulled a giggling Sophie out of the pub by the hand.

It was funny. Now Hermione was the one who found herself wanting to vomit.

Phillip and Hermione only stayed at the pub for another twenty minutes before they decided to call it a night. Phillip tried to put his arm around Hermione as they walked back to the inn, but she maneuvered her way out of it. She still wasn't sure if she wanted to go through with this whole 'break' thing, but once she did, Phillip would be the first to know. If she was going to have a summer fling, he was really her only option. And Phillip wasn't unattractive. Quite the contrary. But he was no Ronald Weasley …

After only ten minutes of lying in her bed, Hermione grabbed a piece of parchment and a self-inking quill from her backpack, and headed outside for some fresh air.

She took a seat on a log just inside of the forest and started writing a letter to Ron. She still planned to write him every day, even though they could only send letters home once a week. He would just get them all at one time.

She tried to write down all of the feelings she couldn't bring herself to say. How this break didn't mean she didn't love him, and how being with him was everything she ever wanted, ever dreamed about. She had been in love with Ron since their first year. It sounded funny, since she was only eleven, but it was true. She'd always loved him. And now she wanted to ruin that, for what? A summer fling with a wizard who had way too many muscles? It even sounded ridiculous in her head.

Hermione was about to write down how wrong she was and call off the whole break when she heard something rustling in the trees. Her hand froze, the quill just touching the parchment. She opened her ears and listened closely.

"Mmmm … Draco Malfoy, you bad boy. Ah! Do not touch me zere! Heehee! Zat teeckles!"

"Ewww!" shouted Hermione, throwing her hands over her ears. "Lalalalala!"

Even her singing could not drown out their laughter. Draco and Sophie emerged from the trees hand-in-hand. Still holding onto the French girl, Draco lay down on the log beside Hermione and put his head in her lap.

"Relax, Granger. We were just messing with you."

"Ooh. What are you writing?" asked Sophie, grabbing the parchment from underneath Draco's head. "A love letter? 'Ow romantic!"

"Give that back!" shouted Hermione, reaching out for it. The weight of Draco's giant head made her legs completely immobile.

"What does it say?" asked Draco, pushing his head even harder into her lap.

Sophie cleared her throat and read, "Dearest Ron, I am so sorry for ze way I 'ave 'urt you." She stopped, turned the parchment around, and said, "Zat ees eet. Not much of a love letter eef you ask me."

"No one asked you!" yelled Hermione, finally managing to push Draco off of her and onto the ground. She stormed over to Sophie and tore the parchment out of her hands. "Both of you need to leave me alone!"

Hermione left the two of them standing in the forest, completely stunned. Back in town, she found a bench to sit on, stared down at her nearly blank letter, and cried. When had everything become so complicated? A year ago she had been so sure she wanted to marry Ron. But now she was choosing to spend an entire summer working with Draco Malfoy just to get away from him. What was wrong with her?

"Hermione."

She looked up from her tear-stained letter and found Draco standing in front of her. She was so irked to see him that she hadn't even noticed he called her by her name for the first time since they'd known each other.

"What do you want, Malfoy?"

"I just -"

"Haven't you had enough for one night?"

"Well -"

"Must you insist on pestering me when -"

"Hermione!"

"WHAT?"

Draco froze, his lips slightly parted. "I -" He had been wanting to say this for some time, but now that he was here, it was harder than he thought to get the words out. She stared up at him, half-expectant, half-irritated, her chocolate-brown eyes wide with tears still waiting to fall. Looking into those eyes, he finally found the courage to say, "I'm sorry."

Hermione's heart literally skipped a beat. She couldn't believe her ears. Draco Malfoy had just apologized to her. And she knew, by the way he spoke, that this wasn't just any apology. His words delved deeper than just this one night. He was apologizing for everything. His part in the war. Sitting back and doing nothing while his aunt Bellatrix tortured her, leaving permanent scars both inside and out. Maybe his apology even went as far back as their years together at Hogwarts. It was hard to know and this wasn't the time to ask for specifics.

"Thank you, Malf - uhh, Draco. I appreciate your apology."

"Good."

They stared at each other awkwardly for a moment before both of their eyes began to wander. A couple walking by stared closely at them, so they both waved, letting them know everything was all right. After all, a crying girl on a bench with a boy standing over her was enough to make anyone suspicious.

Once the couple was gone, Draco started swinging his arms about before finally saying, "I suppose I'm off to bed, then. Will you be all right out here?"

Still avoiding his eyes, Hermione said, "Yes, I'll be fine. I'm actually going to head to bed myself in a minute."

"Should I …?" He pointed towards the bench.

She looked at it and then at him. "Oh, no. You don't need to wait. I'm fine. Really."

"Okay." He smiled awkwardly.

"Okay." Her smile was no better.

"Goodnight Gran - uhh, Hermione." He waved.

"Goodnight Draco." She waved back.

And with that he finally left, but looked back after every few steps, still unsure if he should be leaving her alone. But, as it was, that was exactly what Hermione wanted. To be alone. Maybe that was the problem between her and Ron. Even before they were together, they were always together. Hermione, Ron, and Harry. The Three Musketeers. Together forever.

Hermione groaned. She rolled up the parchment without writing anything more. Maybe she would wait a little bit longer before calling off their break.

XXX

The next morning, Hermione woke up to someone screaming in the next room, followed by a few choice words in French. She immediately jumped out of bed, threw on her robe, and ran straight to Sophie's room.

Inside she found Sophie pacing about while Draco tried to calm her … in nothing but his boxers.

"Oh!" she cried out.

"Bloody hell!" shouted Draco, throwing the blanket from the bed over him. "Knock much, Granger?" So much for him calling her Hermione.

"Sorry," she said, throwing one hand over her eyes. She opened her fingers just enough so she could only see Sophie while Draco looked for his trousers, though her eyes might have strayed a little.

"Wuzzgoinon," said a groggy-eyed Phillip, appearing in the doorway. He was in the middle of pulling on a shirt, giving Hermione a glimpse of his perfectly chiseled abs. She was surrounded by two half-naked men. It suddenly felt very hot in that room.

"Wuzzgoinon? I got an 'Owler ees wuzzgoinon!" yelled Sophie, throwing the red envelope at their feet. "Mr. Olleevander must 'ave found out I cannot Apparate! I am going to be fired!"

"You don't know that," said Hermione weakly, barely masking how hopeful she was that Sophie was right.

"Yes I do! I am going to be fired! My entire summer ees ruined -"

Sophie froze. Out of fear of it exploding, Hermione had opened the envelope. It immediately started screaming, but not as harshly as one might have thought. "HELLO GANG! FIRST OFF, I WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE YOU ALL ON A SUCCESSFUL FIRST MISSION. YOU DID EVEN BETTER THAN I HAD ANTICIPATED."

"Can a Howler give praises?" asked Phillip.

The other three shrugged. This was the first time any of them had heard of it.

"UHHUMM!" said the Howler. They all went silent and listened. "BEFORE I SEND YOU ON YOUR NEXT MISSION, I WILL NEED YOU ALL TO HEAD TO PARIS. THERE IS AN APPARITION LICENSE TEST TODAY IN CHATON Anglé. DO NOT BE LATE, SOPHIE! AND DO NOT LIE TO ME AGAIN! THIS WILL BE YOUR FIRST AND FINAL WARNING!"

And with that, the Howler burst into flames, becoming nothing but ash at their feet.

"I am not fired?" asked Sophie, looking to all of them for reassurance. They nodded. She leaped ten feet off the ground. "I am not fired! Oh, what a glorious day! We must leave at once! We can use ze Floo network to go see Mere and Pere and Pierre. Zeir 'ome ees just a 'op, skeep, and a jump away from Chaton Anglé."

"What is Chaton Anglé?" asked Phillip.

"Eet ees like your Diagon Alley, only better because eet ees een Paris!"

They all went back to their rooms and got ready, even Draco. Before they left, Hermione put a successful Undetectable Extension Charm on both Draco's and Sophie's backpacks. She offered to put Phillip's stuff in her own, but he chose to put it in Draco's instead. Apparently, there was such a thing as 'guy stuff'. Whatever it was, she was sure she didn't want to know.

Within an hour, the four of them were ready and used the Floo network to go to Sophie's parents' house. She went first, followed by Hermione.

When Hermione arrived, Sophie was already in the middle of hugging and kissing a beautiful older woman with her coloring and a striking man with salt and pepper hair.

"Mere! Pere! J'ai manqué vous!" A small boy of twelve joined in the hug. "Pierre! J'ai manqué vous la plupart!" said Sophie, kissing the top of the boy's head.

"Aw. What a sweet family moment."

Hermione jumped. She hadn't even noticed Draco come up beside her.

"Yes. It is exceedingly touching."

She jumped again. This time she hadn't noticed Phillip come to her other side.

Sophie brought over her family and introduced them to everyone. Luckily, they all spoke English, even little Pierre.

"Are you ze 'Ermione Granger?" asked her mother. "Ze one who 'elped 'Arry Potter?"

"In the flesh," said Draco, putting his arm around her. "Not every day you get to meet a celebrity, is it?"

Her parents were absolutely thrilled. They immediately rushed them all into the kitchen and her mom started cooking breakfast. She made everything from bacon to sausage, waffles to pancakes, eggs to potatoes, and anything in between. She even came over and served them all coffee while her kitchenware continued to work itself.

After breakfast, they decided to head to Chaton Anglé so Sophie could get some practice time in before her test. Hermione thought it was a shame she was in Paris for her first time ever and she wasn't even going to get to see any of it.

When they arrived in Chaton Anglé, Sophie guided them straight to the DMVA: Décent Ministére des Vaste Apparition. Once inside they were issued a room for Sophie to practice in. An Accidental Magic Reversal Squad was always standing by if they needed it.

Luckily - or unluckily, Hermione wasn't sure - Sophie hadn't been lying about knowing how to Apparate. She was successful every time, and at noon she was ready to take the test. Unfortunately, like all DMVA's, appointments meant nothing and she was forced to wait forever for her turn.

While she waited, the others decided to go and check out the area. They each went their separate ways, since Hermione wanted to be alone, and the boys had little to no interest in spending time together.

After finding a quaint café, Hermione ordered herself a cappuccino, and pulled out a new piece of parchment and her quill for another try. She sat there for an hour, tapping her quill about, trying to think of the right words to say. Still, nothing came.

"How's that letter coming?"

She looked up to see Draco standing there, licking a double-scoop ice-cream cone. Holding back her laughter at this image, Hermione answered, "Not very well."

"Well, what seems to be the problem?" asked Draco, pulling up a chair.

"It's personal, Malfoy."

"Oh, come on. Who am I going to tell?"

"Sophie, Phillip -"

"Sophie wouldn't care and I'd never tell that daft prick anything."

"Pansy, Blaise, Goyle -"

"Haven't seen Parkinson in years; nor do I want to. Blaise isn't exactly my top mate, and Goyle and I haven't been the same since - well, since the war. He agreed with Crabbe. Thought I'd gone soft." Though Draco tried to play it cool, Hermione could still hear the pain in his voice as he talked about his former friends. Especially when he said the name Crabbe.

"We all lost a lot of things in the war," she said, putting a comforting hand on his.

He stared down at their touching hands blankly for a moment before pulling away.

"So, as you can see, I have no one to blab yours and Weasel's problems to. So, tell me about this 'break'."

"I don't know …"

"Well, let's look at this rationally," he said. "You have a problem and you need to talk it out. Your best friends - who normal people would talk about this stuff with - are him, his best friend, and his sister. So my guess is that whatever internal struggles you have building up inside of you haven't come out verbally yet. Am I right?"

Hermione frowned. "I suppose you are -"

"So why not save yourself future grief and just tell me? I'm here, I'm willing to listen, and I'm not trying to shag you like the other 'willing' member of our party."

He had a valid point. "All right, fine. I'll tell you on one condition."

"I keep my mouth shut?" he asked with a wink.

"Exactly," she answered.

"All right, then. Agreed." He held out his free hand, the other still clutching his melting cone. She smiled and shook it firmly. "So whose idea was it to take a break? Yours or his?"

"Mine."

Draco raised both eyebrows, grinning from ear-to-ear. "Really. And what does this break entail?"

"Everything. It's a break in all aspects."

"So … dating, snogging, shagging?"

"All allowed," she said with a sigh. Hopefully Ron wasn't already shagging someone else. But what if he was? What if this hypothetical girl was better at it than she was? What if he liked her more? What if he was the one to move on and not her? Merlin's beard, what had she done!

"You know, I can actually see the anxiety growing on your face as you go through all possible scenarios in your head. You need to work on masking your emotions. It's healthier."

Hermione's brow furrowed. "No it's not. That sounds positively unhealthy."

"Hmm," said Draco, shrugging his shoulders and focusing on his ice-cream cone. After throwing the last little bit of it in the air and catching it in his mouth, he asked, "So what brought this break on? It obviously didn't come out of nowhere."

Hermione sighed. This was the part she really didn't want to tell him. "He asked me to marry him," she said under her breath.

"What was that, Granger?" Draco asked, leaning in closer.

Sighing even louder, she repeated in a clear voice, "He asked me to marry him."

"Marry Weasel?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Well, you can't do that. Even you can do better than Ronald Weasley."

"And just what is that supposed to mean? 'Even' me."

"Don't get your knickers all in a twist. Old habits die hard. I take back the 'even'. You, just you, can do better than Weasley. That's all I meant."

Hermione eyed him inquisitively. "I'm not sure if you're complimenting me or not, but either way I feel the need to defend Ron. You don't even know him -"

"Nor do I care to," he pointed out.

"Yes, well, you've never really given him a chance, have you? Or Harry."

"Well, that's not true. I offered Harry my hand of friendship on our first train to Hogwarts, and he rejected it to hang out with Weasel."

"Because Ron is nicer than you are."

Draco shrugged. "Probably. I'm not very nice."

"I'm aware," said Hermione, packing up her parchment. "Well, Malfoy, as fun as this was, I think I'm going to go now." She stood up, readying herself to leave.

"Where are you going?" he asked, standing up with her.

"Oh, I don't know. To see Paris, I guess."

"Paris?" he asked.

"Yes. I've never been."

"Never been?"

"No, Malfoy. I have never been. Not everyone has unlimited resources like your family."

"What do unlimited resources have to do with anything?" he asked. "You're a witch. If you want to go somewhere, then just bloody go."

"That's what I'm doing right now. I'm going to the Eiffel Tower, and if you think I'm going to be irresponsible and -"

Hermione never got to finish her tirade. Draco already had her by the arm and Apparated the two of them to the top of the Eiffel Tower.

"Oh!" yelped Hermione, looking down from an incredibly high spot. She threw her arms around Draco's shoulders and held on tight. "Malfoy, are we on the antenna?"

"The best view in the city," he said.

"You do realize that if lightning decides to strike, you and I are toast, right? Literally toast."

"We're lucky it's a clear day then," he said, removing her arms from his shoulders and making her hold herself steady.

As much as Hermione wanted to object, the view was incredible. She could see the entire city of Paris from here, including the Louvre. Another place she really wanted to visit.

Her tough shell finally breaking down, Hermione said, "Well, all right. Hold still a moment, will you?" Hermione took out her wand and put a Muggle-Repelling Charm around them. "Just in case someone looks up and sees two idiots sitting on top of an antenna."

"Good thinking, Granger," said Draco, taking a seat on the edge.

Hermione sat down beside him. "Why did you bring me here, Malfoy?" she asked.

Draco laughed. "You're the one who said you wanted to see Paris."

"You know what I mean," she said sternly. "What is with this sudden change of heart?"

"I had a change of heart three years ago, Granger. You just weren't around to see it."

Hermione glanced sideways at him. "So, this means what, exactly? That you want to be friends?"

Draco crinkled his nose. "Friends is a bit much, but we can at least be tolerant of each other for the summer. Unless you want the unpleasantness to continue."

"Tolerant for the summer will be fine," she said, holding her hand out to him. He moved to grab it but the moment their fingers touched a spark shot between them.

"Ow," they both said, pulling their hands away.

Shaking her stung hand about, Hermione said, "I guess that's what we get for sitting on top of a radio tower."

Draco laughed.

Hermione put her hands carefully on her lap and settled in. "So, tell me, how did you end up volunteering for this job, anyway? If Mr. Ollivander really makes us get the heartstring of a dragon, one would think you'd want some sort of payment for risking your life like that."

"Oh, I'm getting paid," said Draco, leaning back on his hands and lifting his face to the sky. "Just not in the same way you three are."

"What does that mean?" asked Hermione, putting her hands behind her and doing the same.

"I'll tell you, just as soon as you tell me why you said no to Weasley's proposal."

"I didn't say no," she snapped. "I left it open. I told him I would give him an answer at the end of the summer."

"And why did you do that?" he asked.

Hermione pursed her lips and shrugged. "I will tell you as soon as I know."

Draco and Hermione spent the remainder of the day sitting on top of the Eiffel Tower in silence. Two guarded souls basking in the glow of one of the most beautiful Muggle cities, both blindly unaware of how even without words, the two of them were finally starting to understand one another.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I am pretty sure this is the chapter all of you have been waiting for. Though, the M rating still hasn't come into effect. Patience is the key to all great things ;-)**

**P.S. Thanks to HappyCup for the correction.**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

**New A/N: Edited**

Sophie's parents offered for the four of them to stay the night at their home. At first, Hermione, Draco, and Phillip refused, but Sophie _insisted_ they all stay and properly celebrate her success in getting her Apparition license. Her parents even took them all out for a congratulatory dinner.

The next morning, Hermione woke up to an owl poking at her head. It was Mr. Ollivander's owl and he had a letter for them.

She woke the others up and, together, they read about their next mission. There first stop was China, where they collected several strips of leopard bamboo. Since Mr. Ollivander wanted samples from several different locations, this took several days.

After that, they went to California to collect both the bark and branches of the Sequoia trees. This was Hermione's favorite place, by far. She had never seen such incredible trees in all of her life. She didn't know there were places like this in America, especially California. In her mind, it was all beaches and Muggle movie stars.

They camped in the Sequoia National Forest that night. It was a nice change for Hermione. Ever since the war, she had felt more comfortable outdoors. Maybe because she had spent so much time there.

They pitched two tents - with magic, of course. One for the boys and one for the girls. But, only moments after they were setup, Sophie strayed over to the boys' tent. It was another few moments before Phillip entered the girls' tent. Hermione barely noticed him since her nose was already stuck in a book.

"Mind if I hang out in here?"

She looked up suddenly, only to see Phillip already making himself comfortable on one of their sofas. When they locked eyes, he smiled.

"It is getting a bit crowded over there, if you know what I mean."

Hermione groaned. Unfortunately, she did.

"No, I don't mind at all. I'm just catching up on some light reading."

Phillip eyed the encyclopedia-sized book skeptically. "In what world is _that_ considered light reading?"

Hermione took a good look at the book in her hands. It was at least half the size of her normal books. How could it be considered anything but?

All too aware of Phillip watching her, Hermione eventually put her book down and asked, "How is your new backpack working out?"

"Great, actually. Your charm is really impressive. I only wish I knew about it before I packed for this job. Maybe then I could have brought something leisurely, like you and your books. Now I'm just bored."

"You're more than welcome to borrow one. Or I have a broom, if you would like."

Phillip's face lit up. "You have a broom?" he asked.

Hermione nodded. "Yes. It's not a very good one but, I suppose, if you want to fly, it gets the job done. I brought it in case of emergencies."

"Well, let's fly then," said Phillip, getting to his feet.

"Oh," said Hermione, realizing he meant both of them. "I'm not much of a flyer."

"That's fine. I'll fly. You just sit back and enjoy the ride."

"Phillip, I really don't think -"

It was too late. He was already digging through her backpack for the broom. Hermione didn't like the way he did this. If he had 'guy stuff' then he must realize she most certainly had 'girl stuff', and she didn't want him rummaging around through it.

He came out of her bag with the broom, grabbed her hand, and took both her and it outside. When he confirmed they were in the clear, he mounted the broom and waited for her to climb on behind him. Hermione bit her lower lip and started looking around for an escape route. On further investigation, she realized there wasn't one.

Giving in, Hermione put one leg on either side of the broom. The moment her arms were around Phillip's waist, he took off into the air.

Hermione held back her screams just long enough for her to put a Silencing Charm on herself, so as not to alert the Muggles camping nearby. Phillip laughed while she screamed in silence.

After a few minutes in the air, Hermione started to relax. She even opened her eyes for a little while to take in the sights. It was beautiful here at night. Pitch black below, showing nothing but a few faint silhouettes of the gigantic trees, and shining brightly above, with millions of tiny, twinkling stars. She could even make out some constellations. The giant dipper was directly above them, and just to the left of that was Godric Gryffindor battling a serpent. She never quite saw this image, just like those magic eye things. Ron said it was because she lacked imagination. He was probably right.

By the end of their ride, Hermione was actually enjoying herself. The Silencing Charm wore off about halfway through and the two of them had a pretty decent conversation. While Hermione wanted to ask Phillip about his ex-wife, she refrained. If she wanted this guy to be her summer fling then she should probably avoid conversations about former significant others. Or current ones.

"So tell me about this 'break' of yours?" asked Phillip right after they landed on the ground. Apparently, he didn't have the same idea as her.

"Tell me about your ex-wife," she said, crossing her arms.

Phillip chuckled. "All right, you got me. That was rude. I just wanted to make sure it was okay for me to do this."

The broom held in one hand, Phillip reached out his other and pulled Hermione's head towards his. The moment their lips touched, Hermione's body turned scorching hot - from blush, not passion.

She didn't fully respond to Phillip's touch but she didn't reject it either. Her lips hung out in a sort of limbo where they moved in the motions but, at the same time, didn't really go anywhere. Phillip didn't seem to notice … or care, really. At one point, he dropped the broom and wrapped his other arm around Hermione's waist, pulling her body in close to his and rubbing up tightly against her. Finally feeling more into it, Hermione moved her hand up into his silky hair and -

"Uhumm!"

Lips still locked, the two of them turned their eyes to see Sophie and Draco watching them. Sophie had a huge smirk but Draco was a bit more passive. Though, his face was not devoid of a faint smile.

Hermione immediately pulled out of Phillip's arms, looking everywhere but at their onlookers. Phillip, being far less humble, put his arm back around her waist.

"Did you guys need something?" he asked.

Still smirking, Sophie said, "We just got an owl from Mr. Olleevander saying we can send out owls tomorrow. We were looking for you to tell you, but I see you are busy."

Not being able to hold it in any longer, Sophie burst out laughing. Phillip glared at her. She bit her lip, trying to hold it in but it was of little use.

Stepping forward, Draco looked at Hermione and said, "I told Sophie how I promised to help you write your letter, Granger. She says she'll stay out of our hair for the rest of the night."

Hermione didn't remember Draco making such a promise. "You di -?"

He shot her a sharp look.

"Oh, right. Yes, I need Malfoy's help writing the letter because he's … really good with words?" That sounded believable. Maybe it was even true. She really didn't know.

"Zat means you are wiz me, Casanova," said Sophie, winking at Phillip. "I doubt 'Ermione wants you around while she ees writing to 'er boyfriend."

Phillip looked at Hermione, and then skeptically at Draco before nodding and going off with a giggling Sophie into the boys' tent.

Still unsure of what had just happened, Hermione picked up the fallen broom and followed Draco into her own tent. After putting the broom away, and pulling her parchment and quill out, she asked, "What is this really about, Malfoy? I have a pretty good memory and I don't recall you ever promising to help me write to Ron. Nor would I ever accept such an offer."

Draco laughed. "It's nothing, Granger. I just needed a break from Sophie. That's all. The witch won't leave me alone for five bloody minutes. At least I know you'll be quiet."

"Trouble in paradise?" she asked, taking a seat on a large armchair.

"When was it ever paradise?" Draco took a seat on the adjacent sofa and used his wand to repeatedly toss some object he found into the air. "Sophie is more like London. There's always something new and fun to do, but, after a while, you start to realize how noisy it is and all you want is to go to the country for a holiday."

"Am I the country?" asked Hermione. Replaying the words in her head, she immediately regretted it.

Draco cocked his head in her direction, a wide grin sprawling from ear-to-ear. "Do you _want_ to be?" he asked mischievously.

Hermione cringed. _Ugh_. "Definitely not. Forget I said anything."

"The image is planted, Granger. Now, all I can think about is visiting the country. From what I hear, Phil's a big fan -"

"Stop right there," she said, holding her hand out. "If you say one more word about the stupid country I am going to go over there and tell Sophie we're finished. Got it?"

Draco immediately shut his mouth. That lasted about thirty seconds. "So what does Phil kiss like?"

"ARRGGHH!" Hermione took the pillow from behind her back and hurled it at him.

Draco laughed as he held his hands out to stop the squishy blow. "All right, all right! I get it, Granger! Bedroom talk is out."

"If this is what you call 'bedroom talk', I'd hate to experience it firsthand."

Draco threw the pillow back at her. Hermione caught it proudly, placing it comfortably behind her back.

XXX

Draco woke up several hours later on the sofa, feeling strangely uncomfortable. This was the first time he had slept alone in years. He looked over to see Hermione asleep on her armchair. At least someone was there. The blank parchment and quill were still tucked in her hands. They had spent so much time joking that she had never actually gotten around to writing her letter.

Standing up, Draco walked over and took the objects out of Hermione's hands, putting them down on the coffee table. He then went over to her bed, took the blanket off of it, and wrapped it around her.

The moment the blanket touched her skin, she reached her hand out and pulled it tighter. Her hand grabbed onto his, holding it near her cheek. He let it linger there, telling himself that it was just for a moment.

With a sigh, Hermione mumbled the name, "Ron," in her sleep.

Draco immediately pulled his hand away. He went and sat down beside the coffee table, staring down at the blank parchment. Finally making a decision, he did a quick flick with his wand, picked up the quill and started writing.

XXX

Hermione awoke the next morning in a panic. "No, no, no!" she screamed as Mr. Ollivander's owl came swooping through the tent.

She immediately jumped out of bed - uhh … armchair - and started searching for her parchment. The smell of bacon and eggs lingered in the air while Draco talked to someone in the kitchen. She didn't have time to look and see who it was.

Finally, she found it. Her parchment was sitting just beside the coffee table. She picked it up in relief. Only, it wasn't blank. An entire letter was written on the parchment in her handwriting.

"Malfoy," she said, standing up, still staring at the parchment. "Did you do this?"

"Do what?" he asked from across the tent.

"Did you write this letter to Ron for me? Oh Merlin, it's not jinxed or anything, is it?" Turning to Draco, she held the letter reluctantly out in front of her.

Draco rolled his eyes. "No, it's not jinxed, Granger. Why don't you read it before you judge me?"

He was right. Hermione owed him that much. Looking back to the parchment, Hermione read:

_Dear Ron,_

_ I am sorry it has taken so long for me to send you this letter. I was unaware when I took this job that we would only be allowed to write one owl home a week._

_ I want to start off by saying how much I miss you. I am aware my abrupt decision to leave you this summer has hurt you and, for that, I am so sorry. I know you think my decision was selfish but I hope, in time, you will understand that I really did do this for the both of us. Since our first year, the two of us haven't had to know what life is like without one another. You are my best friend, but I truly believe that we need to find out who we are as individuals before we can settle down and be together. Marriage is a big commitment and I do not believe in taking it lightly._

_ I just want you to know, no matter what, at the end of the summer I am coming back to you. I love you and I think about you every day, even when I sleep._

_ I wish I could tell you more about where I am and what I am doing, but I signed a confidentiality agreement and you know how I am about rules, even though we have both been known to break a few in our day. I will write to you again next week and I hope you will write back. Give Harry and Ginny and all of the Weasley clan my love._

_Forever Yours,_

_Hermione_

_P.S. At least you don't have to spend the summer with Draco Malfoy, as roguishly handsome as he might be._

Hermione rolled her eyes and immediately used her wand to delete the 'roguishly handsome' part. On second glance, she decided to delete the entire P.S. There were worse things than being stuck with Draco Malfoy for the summer.

"Yoohoo! Oh, what a glorious day zis ees. What ees zat mouthwatering aroma?"

Being stuck with Sophie Labelle for the summer, for one.

"Oooh! Bacon! I really should not. I am watching my feegure. Oh, maybe just one slice."

"Geez, Soph. Go easy on the processed pig, will you?"

"So what did you think?"

Hermione jumped. She had been so focused on the letter she hadn't even noticed that Draco was now standing right in front of her.

She looked at him, smiled softly and said, "It's absolutely perfect, Malf - uhh, Draco. How'd you manage to find the words I've been looking for all week in just one night?"

"I wrote it all in twenty minutes, actually," he said boastfully. "You cannot imagine how hard it was to write how much I _love_ Weasel. I eventually had to put a spell on the quill to write it itself."

Hermione laughed. "If you left it blank, I could have at least filled that part in for you. It almost feels dishonest sending him this letter."

"Why? It's your words. I just conveyed them better. I've had to write quite a few love letters in my day. Gotten pretty good at it over the years."

Hermione groaned. "Don't tell me they were to _Pansy Parkinson_? The last thing _that_ girl deserves is romance."

Draco smirked. "Maybe not, but I got a few good shags out of it."

"Eww!" shouted Hermione, throwing her hands over her ears. "_Lalalala_!"

Laughing, Draco pulled Hermione's hands back down. "You're so innocent. It might be kind of cute if it wasn't so pathetic."

Hermione humphed at him. "If not wanting to hear about yours and Parkinson's sexcapades makes me pathetic, then so be it! Honestly, I'll never understand why you dated that pug-faced ditz for so many years. Even _you_ can do better."

"Slytherin had slim pickings. Not like you adorable Gryffindors," he said, pinching her cheeks. Hermione batted him away but not without a smile on her face.

"'Ave wu 'ad any bweakfast, Dwaco?" asked Sophie with a mouth full of pancakes.

Hermione smirked. So much for watching her figure.

"Not yet," he said, walking over to the table where his house-elf, Ruskle, was serving breakfast.

"What is _he_ doing here?" asked Hermione, pointing.

Draco ignored her.

Gulping down her food, Sophie turned to Hermione and asked, "'Ow did ze letter turn out?"

"It is good," said Hermione, still staring at the little house-elf.

"Can I read eet?"

Hermione didn't even hear her. She couldn't take her eyes off of the house-elf, wearing nothing but a tiny little washcloth and shuffling around the kitchen, serving wizards and witches who were blind to his very existence.

"Malfoy, I feel the need to inform you that, during the better half of the year, I work at the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, where my focus is the well-being of house-elves. And _this_," she pointed to feast all around them, "is blatant abuse."

"Oh, now that's just not true," said Draco, smiling. "I promised Ruskle before I left that he could come and cook me meals every now-and-then. Didn't I, Ruskle?"

"Oh yes," chirped the house-elf. "Young Master Malfoy has been most kind to Ruskle. Sometimes, he even lets Ruskle sleep in the corner of his bedchamber."

"Malfoy!"

"What?" Draco asked innocently. "He likes it." And Draco hated being alone.

"He's not an animal, Malfoy. You can't just make him lie down wherever. He needs a bed."

"Would it make you feel better if I told you there was a pile of dirty laundry in the corner of my bedchamber?"

He meant it as a joke but, by the way Hermione's eyes flamed up, he knew he had gone too far. Draco put his hands up in defeat. "All right, all right. I'll send him home." Turning to the house-elf, he said, "Ruskle, you heard the lady. It's time to leave."

"B-but Young Master said Ruskle could stay."

Hermione ran over and grabbed the dish the house-elf was holding before he could drop it. The poor thing was positively shaking. He must have been overworked.

"I'm afraid that is no longer an option. We have a house-elf rights activist in our midst. If you want to stay, take it up with her."

The house-elf looked up at Hermione with big, pleading eyes. "Please, please let Ruskle stay. Ruskle will be good. Ruskle promises."

Hermione looked at Draco. She had an unusual feeling that she couldn't quite pinpoint. Something was off here. Ruskle didn't want to go back to Malfoy Manor for a reason and Draco wasn't giving her any hints.

Looking back to the small house-elf, Hermione said, "Yes, Ruskle. You can stay. But _only_ as a guest. You must sit at the table and eat with the rest of us. Here." Hermione handed him back the plate. "Grab some food."

"House-elves can't sit at the table, Granger -"

Hermione wasn't listening. She went back to where she had set the letter down, folded it, put it in an envelope and handed it to the owl, who was still fluttering around. It already had two other envelopes in its mouth. One for Sophie and one for Phillip. But none for Draco.

"Draco, did you have anything to give the owl?" she asked, turning to him.

Draco shook his head. "Nope." He gave no further explanation.

The owl landed on her shoulder and Hermione walked outside to send it on its way. Once it was gone, she lingered in the fresh air for a minute, wondering if it was dishonest to send that letter. It was true, those were the words she had wanted to say, but it wasn't her that said them. Using her hand to shield her eyes from the sun, Hermione stared in the direction the owl had flown off in. Maybe it wasn't too late to call it back.

"Walk with me, Granger." Draco zoomed by Hermione, carrying an envelope.

After a moment of hesitation, Hermione followed. They walked for a good hundred yards before he stopped and threw the envelope into a trashcan.

"What was that?" she asked.

"A decoy," answered Draco. "I told them I forgot that I did have a letter to send after all. Stupid gits didn't even question it."

"Okay … So why are you lying to Sophie and Phillip, exactly?"

"Since we have the day off, Sophie wants to go to Los Angeles. When in Rome, she says. Phil wants to go to."

"And you … don't want to go?" said Hermione, finally catching on.

"Exactly. And, my guess is, neither do you. Am I right?"

Hermione nodded. "You are. I have little to no interest in Los Angeles. I'd rather stay here and explore the forest a little more. Maybe catch up on some reading." Since Phillip had interrupted her yesterday.

"Okay, good," he said. "So, _Brains, _how do you suggest we get out of it?"

As it turned out, coming up with a legitimate excuse to give Sophie and Phillip was easy. Hermione said she wanted to stay and speak with Ruskle about the benefits of being a free elf, and Draco said he wanted to stay to make sure she didn't somehow cost him another servant, since the _famous_ _Harry Potter_ had already used trickery to free his first one. They staged an entire argument about it, though neither of them had to act very hard. Before long, Sophie and Phillip were begging to leave, just to get away from them.

As soon as they were gone, Hermione took out a Muggle map of the area and began studying it. There were trails to hike, mountains to climb, caves to explore and lakes to swim in. She wanted to do it all.

Hermione thought she would spend the day alone but, as it turned out, Draco wanted to come with her, even after she reminded him they would be doing _Muggle _activities with _Muggles._ With a sneer, he claimed he didn't mind.

Hermione knew he was lying, but she didn't question it since she really did want the company. Ever since Draco apologized to her after their first mission, he really had been making an effort to be nice to her. She was even starting to consider him good company, though she would never admit it out loud. _Especially_ to Ron and Harry. They would murder her.

They started out by hiking through the forest. Hermione made Draco use her camera to take photos of her with the giant trees. She even dragged him into one of them, putting on the self-timer.

Her camera worked like a Muggles Polaroid camera, in the way that the photos came out instantly. Completely appalled by the photo of him awkwardly waving while she dragged him about, Draco took the picture and stuffed it into his pocket.

"I will make sure to dispose of the evidence," he said.

Hermione smirked at him. She knew he really liked it, even if he didn't.

Next, they went on a Muggle tour of a crystal cave, only to sneak off halfway through to explore the magical elements held deep within. No one noticed them disappear from their group, or reemerge in another with crystal samples in their pockets. Hermione wanted to send them to Ollivander, just in case he ever wanted to try anything different.

After that, Draco and Hermione went to a lake filled with Muggles. Neither of them had their suits so they only dipped their feet. The water had tiny gold flecks floating in it so, when they took their feet out, they sparkled in the sun. Muggle children everywhere were twinkling.

At the end of the day, the two of them Apparated onto the top of a cliff most Muggles avoided because of the tedious climb. They sat on the edge and watched the sunset, turning the entire forest the colors of rainbow sherbet.

Just before the sun dipped below the horizon, Hermione glanced sideways at the blonde wizard next to her, wondering how she ever could have misjudged someone so much.

"What are you gawking at, Granger?"

Smiling, Hermione looked back towards the setting sun. "You really have changed, haven't you, Malfoy?"

"How so?" he asked.

"Before the war, you never would have spent a day among Muggles. Or with a Muggle-born, for that matter."

"Well, Mr. Ollivander said it best. A lot can change in three years."

"I always knew you weren't bad," she said with a smile. "A bully, yes, but evil? Definitely not."

Draco chuckled. "I was a damn good bully too. Such a shame I'm not inherently evil. I would have been great at it."

"Why inherently? Someone could become evil if they really wanted to."

"No, they couldn't," he said solemnly. "Take it from someone who fought on the other side, Granger. Evil isn't made. It is something you are born with. Anyone can dabble in it but those with a conscience will always regret it in the end. It can even destroy them, tearing them apart from the inside out."

"Is that what it did to you?" she asked, putting a comforting hand on his.

Draco slowly shook his head. "No. Not me."

"Then who -?"

"Don't waste your summer fling on that git, Granger," said Draco, turning sharply towards her.

"What?" she asked, removing her hand from his. "I hardly think what I do is any of your bus -"

"You're right. It's not. But I know you can do better."

"And what exactly would you consider -?"

Hermione never got the chance to finish. Draco had her cheeks in his hands and pulled her in for a deep, passionate kiss. Her body burned from the inside out as he caressed his soft lips against hers, the taste of maple syrup still lingering on his tongue. She responded immediately, having to hold her hands firmly on the ground so the two of them didn't topple over the cliff during their minute of passion. Even in the heat of the moment, she still thought practically.

Hermione's eyes popped open when it finally hit her. She was _kissing_ Draco Malfoy. Gross! She immediately pulled away from him, both of them panting as they stared at each other with wide eyes.

"What in the name of Merlin was that, Malfoy?"

"I - I'm not really sure," he said. After a moment, his eyebrows raised, a wide grin spreading across his face. "I was better than _Brawn_ though, wasn't I?"

_Ugh_. "No comment!"

"That's a yes!" He laughed.

Unfortunately, it was. But Hermione would never admit that out loud. Standing up, Hermione walked towards the forest and readied herself to Dissaparate.

"Granger, wait!" called Draco.

"_What_?" she snapped, crossing her arms in front of her chest. She was very much over this conversation.

Draco stood up and walked - no - _strutted_ over to her. When he reached her, he stared down into her amber eyes and said, "Listen closely, because I am only going to offer this once. If you want to have a fun summer, a truly fun summer with absolutely no attachments, then I'm your wizard."

Hermione opened her mouth to protest but Draco put a finger on her lips.

"Hold on a minute, Granger. Let me finish."

She huffed, but let him go on.

"Now, as I was saying. Phil is no good. He's a fairly recent disgruntled divorcee, looking for love in all the wrong places. Like with a girl who's already spoken for. I, on the other hand, know when to call a spade a spade. This," he pointed back and forth between them, "can never be more than a fling. We both know that. So why not embrace it by having some fun?"

Hermione had a million questions racing through her mind but she decided to start with the obvious. "What about Sophie?"

"What about her?" he asked.

"The two of you have been … hooking up," she said.

Draco laughed. "Says who?"

Hermione furrowed her brow. "Well, you sleep together every night and are all over each other during the day, not to mention that one time I walked in on you in your underwear."

Draco laughed harder. "We're not 'hooking up', Hermione. Sure, we've had a few hardcore snogging sessions, but that's it."

"Then why do you sleep in her bed?"

He shrugged. "I like to cuddle."

Looking to the ground, Hermione snickered awkwardly. "I don't know, Draco …"

"I'll tell you what," he said, lifting her sunken chin. "I'll give you one week to think about it. And, if it makes you feel better, during that time, I will reject all advances from Sophie. Just to prove I am legit. I won't even cuddle. If that's what it takes to get you into my bed."

She snickered even more awkwardly as visions of herself cuddling with Draco entered her head. "You sure are confident, aren't you?"

Draco smiled and shrugged. "I have nothing to lose. Just think about it, Granger."

Grabbing onto her waist, Draco pulled Hermione in and kissed her again, this time Disapparating while the two of them were mid-lip lock. It was a funny feeling, Apparating while kissing someone. It was almost like the magic was squeezing them even tighter together, as if it wanted this to happen.

They appeared back in the tent, both of them panting even harder than before. She kind of wanted to do it again but, not even a moment after Draco let Hermione go, Sophie and Phillip came barreling through the entrance.

"We are back! And we brought _presents_!" sang Sophie while dancing over to Draco. She put a fancy bowler hat on top of his head. "Zey say eet ees all ze rage."

As much as Hermione wanted to laugh at the hat, it actually looked kind of cute on him.

"Hermione." She turned to see Phillip looking at her. "Will you come outside with me for a moment?"

"Uhh, sure," she said, following him out.

Just before exiting, Hermione looked back and locked eyes with Draco. He winked at her before slyly maneuvering his way out of Sophie's clutches, and over to where Ruskle was already making dinner.

"What is it?" Hermione asked Phillip once they were outside.

"I just wanted to talk to you. We haven't really gotten the chance to be alone since … well, you know."

"Oh," said Hermione, suddenly remembering their kiss. Her mind had accidentally been straying to the other one she had just received. "Yes. Our … kiss."

"I just wanted to be sure I didn't make you uncomfortable."

No more than Draco did.

"I know you are having some problems with your boyfriend -"

"Stop right there," she said, putting her hand up. "Let me just clarify this for you. My boyfriend and I are on a break. At the end of the summer, we _will_ be getting back together. So if you're looking for a future with someone -"

Phillip laughed and held his own hand up. "Now, let me stop you and clarify. I am not looking for a future with anyone. I already went down that road and it didn't end well. All I'm looking for is to have some fun."

"Oh," said Hermione, suddenly realizing her excuse to ditch Phillip for Draco was fading. "So … you don't want a commitment?"

"Nope." He smiled

"And I don't want a commitment?"

"Nope." He smiled wider.

"So … now what?" she asked.

"You tell me," he said, creeping significantly closer to her.

A second later, Phillip had Hermione locked in his arms and leaned in for a kiss. Hermione closed her eyes and kissed him back, the taste of Draco Malfoy still lingering on her lips … and her mind.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Another chapter I had to split in two, so it's a bit short. Hope you enjoy!**

**P.S. I tried uploading this chapter several hours ago but for some reason it wasn't working. I deleted it and re-uploaded so I'm sorry if you got the notification twice. Hopefully it works now!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Four days and two woods later Mr. Ollivander finally felt it was time to give them something more challenging to acquire. Their first wand core item would be a phoenix feather from a phoenix rumored to be living in the mountains near Hogwarts.

Ever since Draco stopped paying attention to Sophie she had become completely unbearable. Granted, Hermione had never liked her, but at least she was tolerable before. Now nothing any of them did was good enough and they would get an earful about it. Especially Hermione, who was most often on the receiving end of Sophie's wrath.

Even though Hermione had been spending most of her free time with Phillip, Draco was still fully convinced she would change her mind and ditch the thick wizard for him. He certainly was keeping his promise with Sophie. Hermione almost thought it was better when the two of them _were_ hooking up. _Almost. _At least Sophie had been happy.

When the four of them arrived at the foot of the mountains, they looked up at the gigantic rock maze in wonder. They were coming here with absolutely no leads and had no clue where to even start.

"I wish you would let me go back and get Hagrid, Malfoy," said Hermione. "During the war he was in hiding up here. He knows these mountains better than anyone."

"I'm not letting that giant buffoon help us with anything," said Draco.

"Why not?" she asked. "You're not scared of him, are you?"

"Of course not."

"Afraid he might pop you one for all of the trouble you put him through? Trying to get Buckbeak executed and Hagrid fired. Not to mention just being an overall obnoxious git in all of his classes."

"Are you really going to stand there and tell me you think that big oaf was a good teacher?"

Hermione shrugged. "Maybe not at first but I hear he has really come into his own. Once _certain_ students stopped messing with him."

"Granger, he-tried-to-make-us-raise-those-bloody-stinging-burning-screwt-things!"

"The Blast-Ended Skrewts. Yes, I recall."

"Alright then. That was bad teaching example number one. Should I go on to example number two? When that bloody hippogriff tried to kill me?" he asked, moving so he was in her face.

"Because _you_ didn't follow the rules," she said, pointing into his chest. "If you had listened to Hagrid and _not_ insulted Buckbeak everything would have been fine."

"The disgusting thing has a name? Whatever happened to it, anyway? Last I heard you and your lot helped it escape when it was _supposed_ to be executed for my injuries."

"You _faked_ your injuries, Malfoy! And I wouldn't tell _you_ where he was even if you were the bloody –"

"Weell you two _shut up_! I am so seeck of boz of you!"

Hermione and Draco both gasped as they were pushed apart by a flaming Sophie. Her eyes glowered at them with a raging fire neither of them had seen before. The witch had finally been pushed to her limit.

In her best high-pitched voice, Sophie mocked, "Oh, I'm 'Ermione and I represent all zat ees good. I like to show off 'ow smart I am and _always_ follow ze rules, unless I see somezing as unjust. Zen I follow 'Arry Potter!" Then, switching to a baritone, she added, "And I'm Draco. I'm a pompous leetle git and feel I'm owed everyzing my 'eart desires. I always get what I want and do not care 'o I stomp on in ze process!" And back in her Sophie voice, "Ze real reason ze two of you are always fighting ees because you _boz_ feel you are superior to ze ozer. Get eet zrough your 'eads. _No one 'ere ees superior to anyone else. We are all een ze same boat, so get on board or go 'ome!_"

The mountains echoed with a loud clapping. They all turned to see Phillip grinning from ear-to-ear. "Great speech, Soph," he said.

Sophie let out a deep huff and said, "Zank you," before walking away from all of them and standing at the edge of the path, staring up at the mountains.

Turning to the quarreling former classmates, Phillip said, "If the two of you are done, I suggest we get a move on."

"We should split up. We can cover more ground that way," said Hermione, glancing sideways at Draco, secretly thinking how she really wanted to get away from him right now. She had just gotten a horrible flashback of the Draco she once knew and hated, and she didn't want to stick around and find out if he was going to continue on like this.

"Alright then," said Phillip. "You and I will go east while Sophie and Dra –"

"Wait! No! No!" shouted Sophie, stomping back over to them. "I am not going anywhere wiz _'im_!" She pointed dramatically at Draco.

"That's perfectly fine with me," said Draco. "Then Hermione and I will go –"

"No!" shouted Sophie again. "No boys! I do not want to go wiz Phillipe! I weell go east wiz 'Ermione. You two go west."

"Uhh … aren't you mad at me, though?" asked Hermione, looking skeptically at the two wizards. Neither of them were any help.

"No! I am mad at ze two of you togezer!" she said pointing back and forth between Hermione and Draco. "Zere is a zirty-zree percent chance we weell be working togezer. We might as well see eef eet works now."

Hermione didn't get another chance to object. Sophie already had her by the hand and was dragging her to the east.

Without looking back, Sophie shouted, "'Ave your leetle 'ouse-elf come and find us tonight for an update, Draco. We weell use 'im to communicate."

Hermione glanced back and saw both wizards looking at each other in utter disgust. She never understood why the two of them didn't like each other. They were both cocky and purebloods. Two things they could relate to. But, on one night, Phillip had admitted to be in the Hufflepuff house at Hogwarts. Draco had even less respect for Hufflepuff's than he did for Gryffindor's. Still, Draco disliked Phillip long before they found that out.

For several hours Hermione and Sophie traveled the many paths of the mountains with no success. The longer they walked the more unbearable Sophie became. She would not _stop_ complaining. She was hot, she was cold, she was bored, she was tired, she was hungry, and so on and so forth. Finally, just before sunset Hermione couldn't take it anymore.

"Sophie, if you complain about one more thing I just might do something drastic," she said, her hand creeping closer to her pocket. "So be quiet or suffer the consequences."

"Don't you tell _me_ to be quiet 'Ermione! Eef you zink for one second –"

"_Silencio_!" yelled Hermione with her wand raised high.

Sophie's lips continued to move but no sound came out. Once she realized this, her mouth started to move even more rapidly. She took out her own wand and tried to cast a nonverbal spell, but only ended up making herself snort like a pig. Hermione found this too funny to be annoyed by it.

Finally giving up and putting her wand away, Sophie turned around, whipped her hair in Hermione's face and continued on her way. Hermione followed closely behind.

They only walked for another hour before stopping to setup camp. Sophie sat with her arms crossed on a rock while Hermione did all of the work. Once the tent was pitched Sophie went inside and lied down on her bed. Hermione stayed outside and built a fire, the Muggle way. Sometimes it was nice to get back to her roots.

She had only been out there for a half hour when Sophie joined her, tapping at her throat. Hermione sighed. "You promise you'll be good?"

Sophie huffed, the slight squeal of a pig still seeping through, but, eventually, she looked at Hermione with her bright green eyes and nodded with the utmost sincerity. Hermione nodded back and, with one wave of her wand, removed the silencing charm.

Sophie cleared her throat. No pig sounds emerged. "Zank you," she said, sitting back against a rock and staring at the fire.

Even though she was now free to rip Hermione a new one, Sophie stayed quiet. Hermione looked over and saw that her eyes were completely blank as she stared past the blazing fire to whatever world was hidden behind her eyes.

Staring at the same spot, Hermione said, "I'm sorry I did that, Sophie. You have just been so critical lately and I snapped. It was uncalled for."

Sophie blinked her eyes. "Eet ees fine 'Ermione. At least now I know you 'ave some guts. I 'onestly deed not zink you 'ad eet een you."

"Oh … well, thanks," said Hermione, unsure if that was a compliment.

"I am sorry eef I 'ave been deefficult. Sometimes I do not zink I am cut out for zis job." Sophie picked up several small stones and started tossing them into the fire.

"That's not true," said Hermione, watching her hit every single one of them in the dead center. "You've done great so far. Especially on our first mission. You should be happy you have the physical means necessary in situations where magic isn't always the quickest option. I could never leap across a ravine, and you did it without fear."

"Only because I was showing off," she said. "I 'ad fear on ze eenside. Eef Draco 'adn't secured ze rope wiz mageec I never would 'ave done eet."

"Were you showing off for Draco?" asked Hermione, suddenly feeling very guilty.

"No." Sophie shook her head. "For you, mostly. I 'ave 'eard stories about you for years and, frankly, I was eenteemeedated. You are as eempressive een person as you are een stories. Ze legend ees always supposed to be greater zan ze reality."

"I don't think –"

"Do not be 'umble, 'Ermione. You know you are."

"I don't really think so, but I appreciate the compliment." Pausing, Hermione thought about what she really wanted to ask her. This would be her only opportunity, so she might as well. "So your rising hostility isn't actually about Malfoy?" she asked.

Sophie rolled onto the floor, laughing. Hermione didn't get the joke. "Oh 'Ermione, of course eet ees," she said, sitting back up and wiping away tears of joy. "But eet ees not what you zink. I could care less about _Draco Malfoy_. I just wanted to 'ave some fun zis summer and I 'ave 'eard enough rumors to know 'e ees exactly zat. But 'e rejected me. _Me_. Zat 'as never 'appened before, especially by a wizard who ees as easy to get eento your bed as a puppy." Sophie sighed. "I just do not know what I deed wrong. Did I play eet too easy? Am I not as desirable as I zink I am?"

Now it was Hermione's turn to laugh. "Trust me Sophie, you are plenty desirable. Malfoy is just an idiot. Always has been."

"I am aware you zink zat," laughed Sophie. "Ze two of you are kind of like oil and water, no?"

"You have no idea."

"So tell me, 'Ermione," said Sophie, turning sideways and scooting closer to her, "why do you never do your 'air? I remember seeing you at ze Yule Ball and eet was so pretty. You should do zat again. What you 'ave," she flicked Hermione's bushy ponytail, "going on now ees 'ardly appropriate for such a pretty weetch."

Not even the least bit offended, Hermione said, "Well, I used Sleekeazy's Hair Potion at the ball and it is far too much work to use everyday. I admit, sometimes it bothers me but I have grown used to it."

"Zere are ozer ways, you know. Not to straighten eet but just to tame eet a beet."

Within minutes Sophie had her entire supply of hair products outside and was sorting through them to see what would work best for Hermione. They eventually settled on one that turned Hermione's hair into curly ringlets instead of her usual bushy mess.

"Just put eet on after every shower," said Sophie, dampening Hermione's hair with her wand and then applying the hair potion. Another swift fling of her wand and hot air started blowing out of it. She used her fingers to brush Hermione's hair as she dried it. "And eef you really do not 'ave time to use zis a French-braid always looks nice."

"I do that sometimes," said Hermione, glad to discover she wasn't completely hopeless.

Once Hermione's hair was done, Sophie took her hair supplies back inside and came out with a bag of marshmallows. "Ees zere any tweegs we can use as skewers?"

"I'll go look," said Hermione, heading in the direction she had last seen a tree.

Hermione had just turned the corner when someone grabbed her by the arm and pushed her into the side of the mountain. She barely got a look into Draco's eyes before he pressed up against her and kissed her. She kissed back at first, stroking her hands up his well-toned chest while he tangled his hands in her newly reformed hair, moving his lips down to her neck. Then she remembered.

"Wait, Malfoy. Aren't we mad at each other?" she asked, now using her hands to push him away from her.

Stopping dead on her neck, Draco looked back at her and said, "Why, yes we are, Granger. I thought that was part of the fun."

Pushing him even more away from her, Hermione said, "No, I don't think so. Besides, I haven't chosen you."

"You will," he said moving his lips back to her body, gently tracing his tongue from her ear to her collarbone.

Hermione moaned. He was really _really_ good at that.

"'Ermione! Where are you?" they heard Sophie call. "Zat leetle 'ouse-elf ees 'ere, and 'e ees annoying ze life out of me."

Draco groaned. "Honestly, I gave the bloody elf one job."

"'Ermi – Ah! Oh, what are you –"

_Pop_!

"Aww, that's better," said Draco, returning to his new spot just above Hermione's breast.

"Wait, Malfoy," she said, pushing him away again. "What just happened?"

Moving back towards her, Draco spoke between nibbles on her ear. "Ruskle apparated her somewhere. I told him to tell her he wanted to show her something. Don't ask me what he chose."

Hermione didn't. She wasn't going to let anything else interrupt her moment of ecstasy as Draco moved back to her lips, one hand still pulling at her hair while the other roughly grabbed at her left breast.

He had just started moving his hand up the inside of her shirt when they heard another '_Pop_'!

"'Onestly, ze nerve of zat leetle … _'Ermione_!"

"Oh," squeaked Hermione, pushing Draco completely off of her. She ran over to the nearest tree, a mere three feet from them, grabbed two sticks off of it and ran back towards Sophie, giving Draco one last kiss before straightening herself up and turning the corner.

"You called, Sophie?" she asked, only sounding slightly out of breath.

"What took you so long?" asked the witch, suspiciously.

"Sorry, I … couldn't find the tree in the dark. Ready for marshmallows?" she asked, raising the sticks.

Sophie nodded. "Yes, but eet was ze strangest zing. Zat elf showed up to geeve us an update, wheech was not much of anyzing, but zen when I went looking for you 'e apparated me to show me a flower. A 'ideous, zorny flower zat spat on me. I zink I may be poisoned!" she said, showing Hermione some purple, sticky stuff on her fingers. A similar smudge was still visible just above her left eyebrow.

Hermione looked at it, smiled, put a little on her own finger and licked it. Sophie gasped. "Relax," she said, laughing. "You are not poisoned, Sophie. He was showing you a Purple Polly Flower. They produce a sort of sap that is considered quite the delicacy. Go ahead and give it a lick."

Sophie looked at her hand skeptically before bringing it to her mouth, and barely touching it with the tip of her tongue. The moment she tasted it, her entire persona changed. "Mmm! Zat ees deleecious! Eet would taste absolutely great wiz marshmallows. I am going to go and peeck ze flower. Be right back!" she said, disapparating with a '_Pop_'!

The moment she was gone Draco ran from behind the corner, picked Hermione up so her legs wrapped around his waist, and carried her into the tent. Once inside he put her on the table in the kitchen and climbed on top of her. Draco had barely begun to move his hands along the inside of her shirt when there was another '_Pop_!' outside.

"'Ermione! Where deed you go?"

With a heavy sigh Draco pulled Hermione off of the table, handed her a chocolate bar from his pocket and said, "This _is_ going to happen."

He kissed her one last time before disapparating. Sophie walked in not even a second later. Hermione looked at her, smiled, and held up the bar he had given her. "Chocolate?"

Sophie eyed the candy questionably before smiling, taking Hermione by the hand, and dragging her outside to finally roast their marshmallows.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: A more adventurous chapter, which are always the most fun to write. I pretty much wrote the entire thing while listening to _Requiem for a Dream_ on repeat. Hope you enjoy!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The next morning Sophie was in much brighter spirits. This was the happiest Hermione had ever seen her. She even helped clean up their campsite.

The two of them hiked up the mountain arm-in-arm while Sophie talked about everything from her former boyfriends to her favorite foods. Around lunchtime they took a break and while Sophie prepared their food, Hermione scanned one of her books for any information on Phoenixes. The only one she knew anything about was Professor Dumbledore's phoenix, Fawkes, and the phoenix they were looking for would hardly be domesticated.

The only information she could find was that they often nested on mountain peaks. After lunch she stood up and stared at the remaining mountains above them, pointed to the highest peak, and said to Sophie, "That is where we're going. If the phoenix is not there then I doubt it exists and we will just have to tell Mr. Ollivander that."

"But 'iking up zere weell take days. Do we really 'ave zat sort of time?"

"No," said Hermione, putting her backpack down on the ground and rummaging through it. "That is why we are going to use this." She pulled out her broom and handed it to Sophie. "You will have to fly us, though. I'm afraid I'm not very good at it."

Sophie squealed with delight. "I would absolutely love to! Make sure you 'old on tight, 'Ermione. I can make even ze worst of brooms fly fast."

Sophie mounted the broom and waited for Hermione to climb on behind her. Once Hermione's arms were placed securely around her waist, she pushed off the ground and took off into the air, heading straight for the distant peak.

They stopped only once along the way. There was a field full of Purple Polly Flowers and Sophie picked several of them to snack on later, only draining a few dozen of them in the process. Once the flowers were carefully stored in her backpack they continued on their way.

When they arrived, Hermione made Sophie land at the foot of the peak. If there really was a phoenix up there they didn't want to frighten it away with too abrupt of an entrance.

After casting a suction charm to their hands and feet, the witches began climbing up the side of the mountain. They had only gotten about a third of the way up when they started to hear a weird grunting noise.

"What do you zink zat ees?" asked Sophie, hesitant to climb further.

"It's probably nothing. Just a trick being played on us by the wind."

If only Hermione had been right. They had barely climbed two more feet when Sophie gasped. Then, in a hushed voice, she said, "'Ermione, whatever you do, do not move."

"Sophie, what are you –" The grunting came louder than ever. Hermione looked up and saw a huge, black dragon hanging a mere three feet above her. Its eyes were closed. "Oh," she squealed. "W-what should we do?"

"We should move out of eets view as quietly as posseeble."

Hermione gulped and nodded. The two of them started shimmying to the other side of the mountain as slowly as possible. They would have made it too, but on one of her last moves, Hermione grabbed for a rock that fell loose and tumbled all the way down to the valley below. The dragons eyes shot open and found their way straight to her.

Hermione screamed as the dragon let out a thunderous roar. She and Sophie tried to keep moving but the dragon was already circling around them. Sophie spotted a small pocket in the cliff a few feet above them and pointed it out to Hermione. That was where they needed to go.

Sophie got to it first and crawled inside. The space was barely large enough to lie in but, luckily, they were both small. She stuffed her backpack in first and pulled herself up. Then she reached out her hand to help Hermione. Their fingers had barely clasped when the dragon swooped up and curled its talons around Hermione's backpack, pulling her off of the cliff and into the air. Sophie held onto her, trying to pull her back, but playing tug-o-war with a dragon could never end well. Sophie was pulled loose from her hiding place and dragged into the air with nothing but Hermione's sweaty hand to hold on to.

The dragon carried them higher and higher into the air until they were well above their peak. And then, on its way back down Hermione fell loose of her backpack and the two of them plummeted towards the ground. The dragon scooped Hermione back up but Sophie kept falling.

"SOPHIE!" Hermione screamed after her. For a while Sophie screamed back but, then, there was nothing.

Refusing to give up, Hermione grabbed her backpack off of the dragon's other talon and rummaged through it until she found her broom. Then she used her wand to shoot sparks at the dragon's talons, urging it to let her go. On her way down she mounted her broom and took off into the air. She could hear the dragon on her tail but was too afraid to look back.

It was not until she heard the dragon howl that she finally turned around. Someone on another broom had just flown right into the dragon's side, crashing it against the side of the cliff. All she could make out was the light-blonde hair on a wizards head.

"Draco …"

Hermione immediately turned around and tried to go to Draco's aid, but the dragon was already pushing off the side of the cliff and heading for her. It reached out its front talon and knocked Hermione off of her broom. She hurdled towards the ground screaming, and had just about reached it when someone caught her hand. She looked up and saw Draco smiling down at her.

"I never knew you were such a thrill-seeker, Granger," he laughed.

She might have laughed too if she didn't feel so much like crying. Draco pulled her onto the back of his broom and she hugged onto him tightly. He had just saved her life. There were no words to describe how eternally grateful she was.

"Don't hug me just yet, Granger. We still have to get out of here alive."

Draco began circling their broom around the cliff in an attempt to lose the dragon, but it was much swifter than it looked and stayed with them on every turn. It was not until another broom swooped by that the dragon started to get confused. Hermione was so relieved when she saw Sophie circling around the dragon's head with Phillip hanging on behind her.

Slowing down just over the dragon, Phillip jumped off of the broom and onto its back, holding onto its neck for dear life while it darted around. Sophie went and grabbed her backpack from its hiding place in the cliff before flying back to Draco and Hermione and telling them to help her distract the dragon while Phillip tried to kill it.

Draco nodded and flew into the beast's line of sight. Forgetting all about the boy on its back, the dragon took off after them, flying even faster than before. It knocked the edge of their broom and both went flying off, Draco into the cliff's side and Hermione into the heart of the peak.

Hermione landed with a thump. She rubbed her head briefly before shooting up and looking around. She was sitting in the center of a nest, and beside her was a phoenix so small it must have barely risen from the ashes.

The bird tilted its head sideways and stared at her curiously for a moment before hopping up and pecking her cheek. "Uh … thank you," said Hermione, rubbing the creature's fuzzy head. She tried to move. "Ow!"

Hermione looked down and noticed a red stain seeping through her pants. She rolled them up and saw a huge gash ripped from her ankle to her knee. The small phoenix immediately hopped over to her leg, put its head on it and shed one single tear over the gash. Within moments all pain was gone and the cut slowly began to disappear.

"Thank you again," said Hermione to the little bird who definitely looked like it was smiling. Finally having the strength to stand, Hermione did just that and took a good look around. "Oh my," she gasped. She hadn't realized it before, but Hermione was in the dead center of a phoenix colony. There must have been at least a dozen of them, each more extraordinary than the last, but none could compare to the one now sitting in front of her with crimson feathers all along its body, and a golden tail as long as a peacock's. It black eyes stared back at Hermione with a glimmer of familiarity.

Hermione smiled at the phoenix. "Hello Fawkes," she said. "Remember me? I was a student of Albus Dumbledore's." The phoenix nodded. "Would you and your friends mind if I took some of your feathers for wands? I would be most appreciative."

Fawkes looked at her, held both of his wings out and flapped them about. Hermione looked around and saw the rest of the phoenix's do the exact same thing, even the little one beside her. When Fawkes stopped they all stopped. He and about half of them bowed their heads and waited for her to approach them.

"Thank you," said Hermione, grabbing several drawstring pouches and her camera from her backpack.

She took a picture of each phoenix before plucking three feathers from them: two from their tails and one from their backs. The little one didn't have much in the way of feathers yet, but was still more than willing to share.

Once she had feathers from each phoenix with its head bowed, Hermione went back to Fawkes, and asked, "Would you be able to give me a ride back out there?" She pointed outside of the cliff. "My friends are in trouble and I need to get back and help them."

Fawkes nodded once more before flying up and offering his tail to Hermione. She grabbed hold of it, and the phoenix flew out of the heart of the peak and back into the open. Hermione waved as the little phoenix squawked at her feet.

Once they were out Fawkes dropped her off on a ledge and flew off to where the dragon was chasing someone on a broom in the distance. Only one broom with only one person on it. No one was on the dragons back. Hermione threw her hands over her mouth. It couldn't be.

With the phoenix now pecking at the dragon, the person on the broom spotted Hermione and flew over to her. It didn't take her long to realize it was Phillip. "Hermione!" he shouted upon arrival, sighing with relief. "Thank Merlin you're alive. I didn't know where you'd gone."

"Where are Draco and Sophie?" she asked immediately, tears already flooding her eyes.

"Sophie took Draco to Hogsmeade while I stayed to look for you. He's hurt pretty badly but he's alive. Now, climb on," he said, holding his hand out to her. "We need to get out of here while we can."

Hermione took one glance at the courageous phoenix before taking Phillip's hand and climbing onto the broom. The two of them took off towards the village, the dragon closely on their tails.

Hermione looked back only once. Just in time to see Fawkes claw out one of the dragons eyes. After that the dragon only cared about catching the bird. They were finally in the clear.

XXX

In Hogsmeade Sophie was waiting for the two of them outside of the Three Broomsticks Inn. "Zank Merlin you are alright!" she screamed when she saw Hermione, running up to give her a hug.

The second she pulled away, Hermione asked, "How's Draco?"

Sophie shrugged. "I am not sure. At first ze owner, Madam Rosmerta, deed not want to let Draco een. Somezing about ze war and ze eemperius curse. I do not know."

Hermione bit her bottom lip. She knew all too well what Madam Rosmerta was talking about, but she could never tell Sophie or Phillip about what Draco had done. They would never look at him the same.

"But zen ze 'Eadmistress, Professor McGonagall, 'eard me arguing wiz 'er and made Madam Rosmerta let 'im een. She fetched ze nurse from ze school and zey are looking after 'im now. I 'aven't 'eard any word yet."

Hermione collapsed against the side of the Three Broomsticks and let out a sigh of relief. With Madam Pomfrey looking after him Draco would surely be all right. Sophie and Phillip sunk down on either side of her.

"What a total and complete waste," said Sophie, putting her head back.

"No, not a complete waste," said Hermione, shaking her head. She reached into her backpack and pulled out six drawstring pouches, each containing a photo of a phoenix and three feathers. Sophie gasped at the sight of them.

"'Ow deed you get zese?" she asked in utter disbelief.

"I fell into their colony," laughed Hermione. "There were at least a dozen of them, but only six let me take their feathers. One of them used to be a companion of Professor Dumbledore's. I was lucky he remembered me."

Just then, Mr. Ollivander's owl swooped down, took the six pouches from Hermione's lap and flew off with them.

"How does it always do that?" asked Phillip, staring after it in awe.

Once the owl was out of sight the three of them went inside and ordered three butterbeers with whiskey. Even Hermione wanted the alcohol after a day like this.

Over their drinks Phillip explained how he and Draco had already been heading for the same peak when they heard the dragon roar. Draco's house-elf had brought him his broom several days earlier and they used it to get over to the cliff as fast as they could.

They got there just in time to catch a falling Sophie. Draco dropped her and Phillip off on the ground and recklessly flew after Hermione by himself, without any sort of plan. Sophie said she nearly died when she saw Draco fly directly into the side of the dragon. She thought that was the end of him for sure.

When Hermione's broom went hurdling to the ground Sophie stopped it from crashing by casting a levitating spell on it and the two of them used it to go after them. Phillip had jumped onto the dragons back in an attempt to kill it, but once he was there it proved to be a much harder task than he had anticipated.

When Draco and Hermione fell, Sophie, once again, caught his broom – and him – in a levitating spell, but not until after he hit the side of the cliff at least twice. She brought the broom to Phillip and immediately flew Draco to safety. Phillip stayed behind to try and find Hermione but that proved to be another difficult task, since it was hard to look for someone with no one there to distract the dragon. They were all lucky to be alive.

"You three are lucky to be alive!" shouted Professor McGonagall, coming down the stairs. "Ms. Granger, what were you thinking taking on a dragon like that?"

Hermione's jaw dropped. She looked from Sophie to Phillip but neither of them was of any help. Finally, looking back at her former professor, she said, "We weren't trying to take on a dragon, Professor McGonagall. It was more like the dragon took on us."

"Then _what_ were you doing up there, exactly? I _never_ thought I'd see the day where you and Mr. Malfoy were working side-by-side. Maybe hell has, in fact, frozen over."

"No, Professor McGonagall, it hasn't. A lot can change in three years," she said, quoting Mr. Ollivander.

"I am still waiting on an answer," said Professor McGonagall, crossing her arms and staring down at her through her square spectacles.

The three of them looked around at each other in silence. Phillip was about to say something to the professor when Hermione gave him a stern look and shook her head. "I am sorry, Professor McGonagall, but we signed a confidentiality agreement. I am afraid we cannot tell you why we were up there."

"Fine then, Ms. Granger. You are no longer my student and I cannot make you tell me anything. But, I suppose that never stopped you from _lying_ to me before." Hermione sunk into her chair. "Mr. Malfoy is doing much better but I am afraid he is still unconscious. One of you should sit with him at all times until he wakes up. I suggest someone go up there now."

Sophie immediately stood up from her chair and walked gracefully up the stairs to Draco's room, making sure to toss her hair in Madam Rosmerta's face along the way. The woman said a few curse words before taking her place behind the bar.

Professor McGonagall waited awkwardly beside Hermione and Phillip until Madam Pomfrey came down the stairs. "She sure is a snarky little witch, isn't she?" she said, obviously speaking of Sophie. "Glad she never went to Hogwarts. Might have accidentally let that one kick the buck –"

"Madam Pomfrey, that is hardly appropriate," said Professor McGonagall while Hermione and Phillip laughed.

The headmistress shook her head at them before leaving the Three Broomsticks with Madam Pomfrey closely behind her. She made sure to give Hermione a sly smile on her way out. Hermione smiled back. She was glad to know Professor McGonagall was still on her side.

After a few drinks Phillip led a tipsy Hermione up to his room, where he proceeded to kiss her. At first she kissed him back, but the moment he moved her over to the bed and started taking off her shirt she realized how truly wrong this felt. She stopped him.

"Phillip, wait. I don't think I can do this."

"What's wrong?" he asked panting, but still sitting up. "I thought we agreed this was what we both wanted."

"We did," she said, "but, I think, maybe I was wrong. I'm not the type to have just a casual fling. I need to have feelings there and, with you, I'm afraid I just don't have any. I'm sorry."

Phillip let out a loud, frustrated sigh before rolling spread-eagle onto the bed. "It's alright," he said. "The last thing I want is to make you do something you don't want to do. But, I'm not gonna lie and say I'm not disappointed," he laughed, glancing over at her.

She laughed too, falling down beside him. Now that that was settled, she still had to figure out why if she couldn't have a casual fling with Phillip, she was still willing to have one with Draco. It made absolutely no sense. Then it hit her like a ton of books. She _liked_ him.

Five minutes later Hermione went out of Phillip's room and into Draco's. Sophie was asleep in a chair beside his bed. Hermione went over and woke her up gently, telling her that she would take over the watch. Sophie was more than happy to let her.

For hours Hermione sat in that chair, staring down at the boyish face of the wizard she had spent so many years hating. She reached over and moved a stray piece of hair out of his eyes, taking a moment to gently stroke her hand across his cheek. The war really had changed him.

Phillip came in to take over the watch just after sunrise. Hermione didn't want to leave Draco, but she didn't want Phillip getting suspicious either, so she gave in and left.

She met Sophie downstairs for breakfast and the two of them feasted on muffins and sausage, both of which Sophie smothered in the sap of one of her Purple Polly Flowers. It felt like days since they had eaten a proper meal, even though it had been a little less than one.

After breakfast the two of them explored the town together. Sophie spent hours in Honeydukes sampling every kind of candy. They put together a small 'get well soon' basket of candy for Draco, as well as stocking up on all of their favorites for the summer. Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans were on neither of their lists, but they bought several boxes for Draco and Phillip since boys seemed to love them.

After Honeydukes they went over to Tomes and Scrolls so Hermione could buy some new books. As soon as they entered she asked the shop owner for their best book on dragons. If they were going to run into one again she was going to make sure they were prepared.

"Do you 'ave any romance novels?" asked Sophie. Hermione tried not to judge. The owner wasn't as kind.

Once they had their books, the two of them headed to Madam Pudifoot's Tea Shop for tea and lunch. They drank their tea there but took their lunch to go so they could bring some to Phillip. He was absolutely grateful when they brought him his sandwich and all of the candy.

The three of them sat around Draco's bed eating and laughing while Sophie and Phillip told Hermione some of the more positive times they spent working together at Thinx. It definitely seemed like a great company to work for, until the obvious happened.

When it was time for Sophie's shift Hermione decided to take a nap. She hadn't slept at all the night before and was running on empty. She didn't wake up until it was time for her to take over.

During her shift Hermione sat in the chair beside his bed, reading her new dragon book by the light of a single, enchanted candle. About halfway through the night she heard a faint voice call her name. She looked over and saw that Draco's eyes were open just a crack. She immediately shut her book and moved so she was sitting on the bed beside him.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

"A little sore, but not too bad," he answered. "Where are we? How are Sophie and Phillip?"

"They're both fine," said Hermione. "We're in Hogsmeade at the Three Broomsticks."

"The Three Broomsticks," he repeated back to her. She nodded. "Merlin's beard! Is Madam Rosmerta gonna pummel me?" he asked, trying to sit up.

"It's fine," said Hermione, pushing him back down. "Professor McGonagall talked to her. She's not going to pummel you. But you do owe her a very big thank you. She has been putting us all up since yesterday. Not free of charge, of course, but at a reasonable price. Nothing our allowances won't cover."

"Oh," he said, sinking back into his bed. Glancing sideways at her, he asked, "Are you alright, Hermione? Were you hurt at all during the fall?"

"Well, I did hurt my leg a bit but, luckily, I fell into a nest of phoenixes and one of them shed a tear on my leg. I was fine after that."

"Good," he said with a sigh of relief. "Does that mean you got the feathers, then?"

"I did," she said proudly. "From six different birds. One of them was the same one used in the core of Harry's and You-Know-Who's wands. I don't know if Mr. Ollivander wants to use his feathers again, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to give him options."

"Yes," agreed Draco. "Obviously those feathers make for powerful wands, so it definitely wouldn't hurt." Draco paused and took a moment to look around. "What time is it, Granger?" he asked.

Hermione looked to the clock on the nightstand and said, "Just after midnight. Why?"

Draco turned to her and gave her a cocky grin. "Your week is up, Granger. Decision day has arrived."

Hermione smirked down at him. "Honestly Malfoy. You just fell off a broom and into a cliff. Is that really the only thing on your mind?"

"Frankly, I could use a good snog after a fall like that," he said. "So what's it gonna be?"

Leaning down, Hermione gave Draco a gentle kiss, afraid if she pressed too hard she might break him again. When their lips parted she looked into his stone-gray eyes with her chocolate-brown ones and said, "If you woke up yesterday I could have done that sooner. I told Phillip last night that it wasn't going to happen between us."

Draco had no words. Even though his body was still aching he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close, all the while kissing her on her plump, pink lips. Unfortunately, the hardcore snogging session he had been hoping for was still a bit much for him and he had to settle with just cuddling. For the first time ever Hermione Granger fell asleep in Draco Malfoy's arms, neither of them wanting to let the other go.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Less action, more Draco and Hermione cuteness. Hope you enjoy :-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The next morning Hermione and Draco woke up to the sound of Mr. Ollivander's owl pecking on the window. Hermione unhappily climbed out of Draco's arms and let the owl in. It immediately dropped several letters onto Draco's bed. There was one addressed to each of them individually and another addressed to all of them in Mr. Ollivander's handwriting.

Hermione opened that one first. She had barely begun to read it when Phillip came barging in. "Sorry I'm late Hermione. I overslep – Oh, you're awake," he said looking at Draco, who was now sitting up and staring at the letter with his name on it.

"He woke up just after midnight," said Hermione as she perused through Mr. Ollivander's letter. When she finished she frowned, looked at them, and glumly added, "It looks like we've been put back on wood duty. Somehow word got back to Mr. Ollivander about our dabbling with death. He wants us to head to India and retrieve the branch of a Banyan tree immediately. He'd prefer it if we found one with some age to it. Meaning, the bigger the better."

Draco chuckled and bit his lower lip. It was too easy.

"You are awake!" squealed Sophie, who had just walked into the room. She jumped onto the bed and hugged Draco a little too tightly. Even though he tried to hide it, he still cringed with pain. Sophie immediately let him go. "Sorry. I forgot you 'urt more zan your 'ead."

Hermione and Sophie went downstairs to get them all breakfast while Phillip stayed with Draco. They all ate around his bed while reading their letters from home. They gave each other one hour to write responses and then they had to leave.

Hermione wasn't sure how to respond to Ron's letter. She had basically decided the night before that she was, in fact, going to follow through with their 'break' and with one of the wizards he hated most in this world – if not _the _most. She was fully aware he might never forgive her, but somehow she still couldn't stop herself. Hermione wanted Draco. She didn't know why, but she did.

And Draco hadn't been wrong when he said the two of them could never be anything more than a summer fling. He really was the practical choice. If Phillip fell for her there was nothing stopping him from pursuing something further. But if Draco fell for her – she knew he never would, but in her head this was hypothetically speaking – there were a _million_ things stopping him from pursuing something further. And the best part was Ron never had to know. No one did. It could be their little secret.

Ron's letter to Hermione was nice, but there really wasn't much to it. He said he understood about her only being able to write home once a week. He had actually sent Pig out several times looking for her but he always came back with Ron's letters still in his beak. Other than that he only gave a brief description of what he had been doing in her absence - mainly working with George at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes – and sent love from Harry and Ginny. That was it. No 'I love you', no 'I miss you', just plain and boring facts. Hermione crumpled up her letter and tossed it into the wastebasket.

"Ees somezing wrong, 'Ermione?" asked Sophie.

"No," said Hermione, noticing the unopened letter with Draco's name on it sitting beside her crumpled one in the wastebasket. She looked over at him and noticed he wasn't writing anything. Again.

After scribbling a few lines to Ron, Hermione went over to the wastebasket and pretended to grab her letter out of it, but secretly grabbed Draco's while no one was looking. She then excused herself to her room, saying she was going to get ready to leave.

As soon as she was alone she tore the letter open, but a knock came at her door before she got the chance to read it.

"'Ermione, can I come een?" asked Sophie from the other side.

Hermione sighed, hid the letter in her backpack, and opened the door.

"Can you believe we 'ave been demoted?" Sophie said while barging into the room. "Eet ees reediculous. What 'appened een ze mountains was 'ardly our fault. 'Ow were we supposed to know a _dragon_ was zere. Eet ees not like we were een Romania."

Hermione nodded in agreement, but, secretly, she was glad to be going on an easy mission. She had had enough adventure to last her for a few weeks … if not longer. Finding trees was definitely more her speed.

"So what deed your boyfriend write een zat letter zat 'as you so upset?"

Hermione looked at Sophie and frowned. Why did she have to be so observant all of the time? "It's not what he said. It's what he _didn't_ say that bothers me. It is like he doesn't even care."

"Or maybe 'e cares too much," said Sophie.

"What do you mean?" asked Hermione taking a seat on the bed and listening attentively.

"Face eet 'Ermione. I 'ave never met your boyfriend but I 'ave 'eard enough about 'im to know zat you are ze catch, not 'im. You are smarter, more attractive, and an all around better witch – or wizard."

"I don't think –"

"You are so blinded by love you do not see eet, but 'e does. 'E zinks zat you are going to leave 'im at ze end of ze summer so 'e ees mentally preparing 'imself now by deestancing 'imself emotionally."

"That is ridiculous. I already told him on multiple occasions that I am coming back to him at the end of the summer. I never meant for this break to be forever. I just wanted to explore myself as an individual before settling down."

"Eef you really want to explore yourself as an eendividual, zen why 'ave you already keesed anozer weezard? On more zan one occasion."

"I –" Hermione was at a loss. Sophie was right. If Hermione wanted to see what it was like to be alone, then why was she so eager to see how she was with someone else? It was only two weeks into their summer apart and she had already kissed _two_ wizards. That was already double the amount she had kissed ever! Suddenly, Hermione felt very sick.

"Zat ees somezing you should really zink about," continued Sophie, putting a sympathetic hand on Hermione's shoulder. "Maybe ze problem ees not you. Maybe eet ees you and 'im togezer."

Sophie gave her one more squeeze on the shoulder before going to her own room to pack, leaving Hermione alone with her thoughts. Everything she had said was true. Hermione liked to tell herself she wanted to spend this summer alone to see what she was like without Ron, but, the truth was, what she really wanted was to see what she was like with someone else. Was what she had with Ron truly special, or was there something better out there?

Hermione bit her lip. Maybe she hadn't chosen the greatest guy for her experiment. It didn't take a genius to realize she and Draco didn't exactly bring out the best in each other. It was more the opposite. He made her angry and irritable and sometimes downright cruel.

But, on the reverse side, when she was around him it was the only time she didn't feel the need to be perfect Hermione Granger. Because he didn't expect her to be. Draco didn't rely on Hermione in the ways Harry and Ron did. It was like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders every time she was around him. It was relaxing, to say the least - even with all of the arguing.

Another knock came at her door. This time the person entered without waiting for her to answer. Draco came in fully dressed and with his backpack on his back. As soon as the door was shut behind him he tossed his bag onto the floor, scooped Hermione up in his arms and carried her over to the bed, all the while kissing her passionately.

He lied on top of her, but quickly flipped her over so she was on top, since he was still in a great deal of pain. The two of them got to kiss for a whole three minutes before someone else knocked on the door. This was the longest they had gone so far without any interruptions. Maybe soon they might even get five whole minutes of peace.

With a quick flick of her wand Hermione's stuff was packed and she answered the door. Phillip and Sophie were ready to leave. Both of them stared past Hermione at Draco, who was sitting on her bed, each looking back at her inquisitively. She waved it off like it was nothing, grabbed her backpack, handed Draco his, and the four of them were off.

On their way down the stairs Hermione spotted Madam Rosmerta behind the bar. She pointed her out to Draco and told Sophie and Phillip to wait while he went to talk to her, handing him a small pouch with their payment.

"Will you come with me?" he asked with pleading eyes.

"O-of course," stumbled Hermione, not completely sure if her being there was a good idea. Technically, in the case of this argument, she was on Madam Rosmerta's side.

The barmaid did not even notice when the two of them approached her. It was not until Hermione cleared her throat that she finally looked up from what she was doing, her eyes stopping on Draco's pale face – and growing paler by the second.

Clearing his own throat, in a confident voice, Draco said, "We brought our payment for our stay." Without saying anything, Madam Rosmerta held her hand out. Draco reached into his own pocket before handing her the pouch, throwing a few extra Galleons in with it. "I know this is hardly retribution for what I did but … but I hope it will help you one day forgive me."

Hermione groaned. It was so typical of a Malfoy to think throwing money at a problem would make it go away. She looked at Madam Rosmerta, who looked just as irked as her.

"Forgive you?" she said, her nostrils flaring. "You used an_ unforgiveable_ curse on me. In the simplest sense of the word, I will _never_ forgive me.

Draco looked to Hermione, who avoided his eyes completely. She was not going to give him any hints here. This was all him.

Turning back to Madam Rosmerta, under his breath, Draco said, "I'm sorry."

"What was that?" the witch asked, holding her ear towards him dramatically. "I couldn't hear you over all of this bar noise."

Draco huffed. He was fully aware she had heard him. She just wanted him to say it again. "I'm sorry," he repeated, this time much louder and clearer. "I was young and stupid and only thinking of myself. I didn't even consider what my actions might do to others, all I thought about was how to please the Dark Lor – uhh, You-Know-Who. I was a fool, plain and simple, and I apologize for that. You did not deserve to have your free will taken from you.

"I understand what I did was _unforgiveable_, in the simplest sense of the word, and I am certainly not asking you to forget. Merlin knows I haven't. All I'm asking is that, one day, you might consider not hating me. Forget forgiveness altogether. Just, don't hate me."

Madam Rosmerta stared at him for a moment before casting her eyes to the ground, nervously flipping the bag of coins between her hands. When she looked back up she caught his eyes and said, "I don't hate you, boy. Never did. Even when you and your pesky friends caused ruckus in my pub. But forgiveness won't come cheap. We'll start with this." She held up the extra Galleons he had given her. "Gets a bit slow here during the summer. Feel free to send a few extra of these every now-and-then. And don't make a habit of coming here or anything. I will serve you, but I'd prefer to see your face as little as possible. Got it?"

"Uhh …" Hermione hit him. His eyes focused and he said, "Yes, got it. I would be happy to invest in this … _fine_ establishment."

Hermione rolled her eyes. He could at least _try_ to sound convincing.

"Alright then. Go on. Get outta here."

"Right." Draco turned to leave but Hermione pushed him back around.

"You're forgetting something," she whispered into his ear.

It took Draco a moment, but he eventually looked back at Madam Rosmerta and said, "Thank you for letting us stay here while I was injured. I know I am not exactly your top choice of customer."

Madam Rosmerta nodded. "My pleasure," she said, though, her tone contradicted her words.

Draco nodded back before heading for the door. Hermione followed him, giving a small wave to Madam Rosmerta as she went.

Sophie and Phillip were waiting by the door for them. "What was zat about?" asked Sophie, staring at Draco.

"Just tying up some loose ends," he said with a smile so grim it could not mask the pain behind his eyes. Sophie immediately dropped it.

The four of them went outside where they took out the two brooms they had. They had decided to fly to India. Using the Floo network was getting expensive, especially since it wasn't normally used for such long distances. They would normally have to make at least ten stops before they arrived at the right destination.

Since Draco was still hurting, Sophie and Phillip took the reins on this mission. Sophie wanted to fly with Hermione. Draco almost objected, but when he realized he would rather ride _bitch_ with Phillip than let Hermione close to him he kept his mouth shut. Even though Hermione had rejected Phillip, it was clear, by the way he still looked at her, that he wasn't giving up.

"You alright with that, Draco?" asked Phillip, secretly hoping he would object.

"Couldn't be more alright with it, _Phil_," he said with a wide grin. He would not be fooled.

The four of them got on their brooms and flew to India. When they arrived they immediately located a Banyan tree, flew over it, and Sophie used her blade to cut off one of its highest branches. Mr. Ollivander's owl swooped in and took it from them immediately, dropping a letter in Hermione's lap as he did so.

"Wouldn't zese trees be so much fun to leeve een?" asked Sophie with glee. She flew into it and dropped Hermione and the broom off on one of the branches while she went to explore the tree further.

"What does the letter say?" asked Phillip, landing his and Draco's broom in the tree beside her.

Hermione opened it and read it through. She frowned. "He's just giving us information on another tree. This one's in South America. He has setup a portkey for us somewhere around here. It leaves in an hour."

"Look everyone!" called Sophie. They all turned to see her laughing as she swung from branch to branch. "I am just like zat Muggle man wiz ze loin cloz. What ees 'is name, 'Ermione?"

"Tarzan," she said without a second thought. She had always been a fan of the muscular jungle man.

Mr. Ollivander kept them busy like this for the next week. They went from place to place, collecting seven different woods in six days. It was exhausting, and Hermione and Draco had gotten absolutely no time together, other than a few stolen kisses here and there. At the end of the day everyone was so exhausted they all went straight to sleep.

Finally, just before the week had ended, Mr. Ollivander promised them a rest – just as soon as they collected one more wood. It was in the middle of a wizard desert in Africa – charmed so no Muggle could ever enter – near an oasis. From what Hermione read in one of her books, the trees existence was just a rumor. They would have to explore every square inch of that desert if they were going to find it, which meant one thing:

"We're going to have to separate," Hermione announced to the group. "It is the only practical way to search an _entire_ desert."

"I call a broom!" yelled Draco, eager to fly in the driver's seat now that he was feeling better.

"I'll take the other one," said Phillip, making sure to do this before Sophie could call Hermione again and leave him stuck with Draco.

"Alright then," said Hermione. "The tree is rumored to be in the northern most part of the desert so we'll all start there. Phillip, you and Sophie will go east while Malfoy and I go west. Does that work for everyone?"

No one objected, though both Sophie and Phillip looked like the wanted to. Only, neither of them could come up with a legitimate reason why. They got along fine. There was no reason they shouldn't be partners. Still, something here didn't seem right.

"Shall we then?" said Draco, mounting his broom.

Hermione nodded and climbed on behind him. Before he took off, she turned back to Sophie and Phillip, and said, "We'll send Ruskle to you tonight with an update. Be careful."

The two of them flew off before Phillip and Sophie even mounted their broom. Sophie stared after them with her arms crossed. "Do you notice anyzing deeferent about zose two?" she asked Phillip.

"Yep," he answered. "A lot less hostility, which is a shame. I always enjoyed their squabbles. It kept things lively around here."

"Oh, I get ze feeling zings are lively enough," said Sophie, her eyes narrowing at the shrinking speck that was Draco and Hermione in the distance.

The desert was vast in every direction. Sometimes it was amazing how much Muggles didn't know existed. Draco and Hermione flew around for the good part of the day before they finally decided to stop and make camp.

As soon as the tent was pitched Hermione sat on the couch and made a grid on their map of the desert. She checked off each box they had explored that day unsuccessfully. When she was finished she looked at the map and sighed. They still had a long way to go.

Draco was in the kitchen talking to Ruskle, whom he had just called forth. He was giving the house-elf the update he wanted him to relay to Sophie and Phillip, which was pretty dry. As soon a he spoke with them he was to return and make dinner. Hermione crinkled her nose. If she didn't love Ruskle's cooking so much she would never allow this. Though, the elf did seem to thoroughly enjoy it.

The second the elf was gone Draco snuck up behind Hermione and slipped the map out of her hands. He then slid over the back of the couch, his head falling into her lap. "How bout a little sugar?" he asked, puckering his lips.

Hermione rolled her eyes but still leaned down and gave him a kiss. Draco cupped her cheek in his hand and lifted his head to meet her halfway. Within seconds their small kiss became much more. Hermione panted heavily as Draco bit her bottom lip, forcing his tongue deep into her throat and massaging it against her own. Ron never kissed her like this.

There was a loud '_Pop!_' but neither of them stopped until they heard, "I knew eet!"

Hermione and Draco froze. Both of them turned slowly to see Sophie pointing an accusing finger at them. Phillip was standing beside her with wide eyes, and Ruskle was hiding behind her legs.

"Please forgive Ruskle, Young Master Malfoy. They grabbed onto Ruskle while he was disapparating, sir."

Draco groaned. "Honestly Ruskle. I gave you one job. The two of us can't even be alone for five bloody minutes without everyone barging in," he said, looking from Sophie to Phillip. "Is there any reason the two of you are here?"

"I wanted proof!" yelled Sophie, finally lowering her finger. "Ze two of you 'ave been acting suspeecious ever seence zat 'ole dragon mess."

"Since before then, actually," smirked Draco.

Hermione smacked him. "This is neither the time, nor place, Malfoy. Stop being an instigator."

"What are you getting mad at me for? They're the ones who came barging in here _uninvited_," he said, motioning his head towards the witch and wizard.

"So, does _before_ mean you were snogging the two of us at the same time?" asked Phillip, his face cringing. "_Disgusting_. Say it isn't so, Hermione?"

"Uhh … well, you're not wrong, but you're not really right either. He kissed me the night after you first kiss –"

"You don't have to explain yourself to them, Granger. We haven't done anything wrong."

"But –"

"Would the two of you mind leaving now? If you haven't noticed we're a little busy."

Hermione's cheeks flushed bright red. She was absolutely horrified. How could Draco act so cold, so cruel, and so … like Draco Malfoy. Merlin's beard, what had she done?

"And 'ere I zought we were becoming friends, 'Ermione," said Sophie, sneering at her.

Hermione's flushed cheeks went white. "We were – I mean, we are."

"Eef zat were true zen you would 'ave told me. Eef I remember correctly, ze day after Phillipe keessed you was ze day Draco stopped sleeping een _my_ bed. I told you 'ow zat made me feel. You should 'ave told me right zen and zere, but you deed not."

"Only because I didn't want you to hate me."

Sophie snuffed. "Well, meession _unaccompleeshed_! Let's go Phillipe. Ze two of zem want to be _alone_." Before Phillip had time to object, she had him by the hand and disapparated the two of them out of there.

The second they were gone Draco pounced back on Hermione. She pushed him off of her and moved off of the couch.

"What's your problem?"

"What's _my_ problem? What's _your_ problem, Malfoy?" she asked in a snooty tone. "The two of them were already upset. Why did you have to add insult to injury like that?"

"Because-it-was-none-of-their-business, Granger. The two of them shouldn't have even shown up here. It was rude."

"And I'm sure they think _we're_ rude for not telling them."

"Why should we have to tell them anything?"

"Because-they-are-our-friends, Malfoy. And they're both feeling rejected right now."

"They were," he laughed.

Hermione threw her hands in the air. "You're impossible!" she shouted, marching over to her bed.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm going to bed," she said, not even bothering to change her clothes before climbing into the sheets.

"But we haven't even had dinner yet."

"I've suddenly _lost_ my appetite."

Draco furrowed his brow while glaring at her. "Fine then. Be like that." Draco rolled off of the couch and stomped into the kitchen.

"Is Young Master Malfoy ready for dinner, sir?" asked the house-elf. "Ruskle made stew."

"Not now, Ruskle. It seems I have _also_ lost my appetite. I'm going for a walk."

Draco stormed out of the tent. As soon as he was gone Hermione climbed back out of bed and went over to her backpack, searching through it for some pj's. Truthfully, she wasn't trying to be dramatic when she kept her clothes on in the first place, she just wasn't ready for Draco to see her with her clothes off. Snogging was fine for now, but Hermione still wasn't sure she wanted to take their relationship further. After tonight, she was less sure than ever.

While digging through her backpack, Hermione came across Draco's letter from home she had hidden in there almost a week earlier. They had been so busy that week she'd completely forgotten about it.

After changing her clothes Hermione sat back on her bed with the opened letter in her hands. She knew it was wrong to invade Draco's privacy like this, but she just had to know what it said. He was keeping something from her. From all of them. And, for some reason, she really _really_ wanted to know what it was.

Letting out a deep sigh, Hermione lifted the letter and started reading:

_Dearest Draco,_

_ I am sure you are well aware how your avoidance distresses me. I understand you wanted to get away this summer, but absolutely no communication with your family is beyond ridiculous._

_ Your father is not doing well, Draco. He is literally killing himself with grief. I am, honestly, not even sure if he will make it through the summer. I urge you to come home immediately. You will never forgive yourself if you miss your fathers last days._

_ It sickens me. The war is over, the Dark Lord is defeated, yet, still, he has won. Even in death he still manages to rip our family apart. Please, Draco, come home soon. I need you here._

_Forever with love,_

_Your mother_

Hermione's jaw dropped as the letter fell from her hands. How could she have been so blind? Draco had given her all of the hints that something back home was going wrong. He'd even said evil could rip someone apart from the inside out. She knew even then that he wasn't speaking metaphorically, but she never questioned it. Oh Merlin. She felt sick.

Just as her head began to spin the house-elf appeared with a glass of water. "Is the Young Master's mistress alright?" he asked, handing her the glass.

Now Hermione _really_ felt sick. Since when had she become Draco's _mistress_? Taking the glass from Ruskle, Hermione said, "I'm fine. Thank you." She paused to take a sip of water. Looking at the elf, a light flickered in Hermione's head. "Tell me, Ruskle. How are things at Malfoy Manor these days? I'd really like to pick your brain and see if my efforts at the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures have had any affect on the wizarding community."

"Uh –" The house-elf was speechless. No one had ever asked him what he thought before. But he would never speak ill of his masters. "Everything is as it always has been, Miss."

"But what do you consider _always_," she said matter-of-factly. "I knew Dobby, who was the Malfoy's house-elf before you, and he didn't seem to think life at the manor was very nice at all. Have things improved since his time?" The house-elf remained silent. "Maybe I should give you an example. The _older_ Master Malfoy, Lucius, how is he do – I mean, how does he treat you?"

"Master Malfoy does not treat Ruskle, Miss."

"What does that mean?"

The house-elf's ears went on full alert. "Ruskle's mistress is calling him. Ruskle must go at once!"

_Pop_!

Hermione frowned. Clearly, her powers of persuasion needed some work. Getting up from her bed, Hermione went over to the sink and used her wand to burn the letter, then washed its remains down the magical drain. Things right now were bad enough with Draco. The last thing she wanted was for him to catch her with that letter.

Several hours later Hermione lied awake in her bed, staring blankly into the darkness above her. Draco hadn't come back yet and she was starting to worry.

Hermione was just contemplating going out and looking for him when someone came through the tent's entrance. She immediately shut her eyes and pretended she was asleep.

There was some shuffling around before someone stopped beside her bed. "Are you awake, Granger?" Keeping up with her sleeping act, Hermione fluttered her eyes. Draco reached down and shoved her arm. "I know you can hear me, Granger. You can quit pretending."

Hermione pushed him away and shot up in her bed. "What are you doing, Malfoy? It's nearly midnight."

Draco smirked. "How would you know that if you were asleep?"

"I –" Hermione lowered her eyebrows at him. "Touché Malfoy. Well, you caught me. I've been awake. But now that I know you're okay I'd like to go to sleep," she said. "So what do you want?"

All hints of a smile disappeared from Draco's face. Lowering his eyes to the floor, he said, "I've had some time to think, Granger, and I think you were right."

"About what?" she asked.

"About me," he answered. "Being impossible. It's not the first time I've heard that, you know."

"You don't say," she smirked.

Draco lifted his eyes to meet hers. "When did you become such a smartass? Don't tell me I'm rubbing off on you?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You could never rub off on me, Malfoy. I've always been a bit of a smartass. I'm just not as upfront about it as you are."

Draco half-smiled at her. "I believe it. I guess we still don't know each other very well, do we?"

Hermione frowned. "No. I guess not," she said. "But I think we're starting to." The two of them stared at each other in silence, both feeling their walls crumble just a little bit more. Hermione gave him a sideways smile. "Just to be clear, you _are_ apologizing, aren't you?"

Draco chuckled. "Yes, Granger. That was my intention. You're right, I'm wrong. That's how it works, isn't it?"

"Absolutely," Hermione said, sitting up proudly. "But we really should get to bed. We have a lot of ground to cover tomorrow."

"Are we at the point of forgiveness where I'm allowed to sleep in your bed?" he asked hopefully.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Fine, Malfoy. But no funny business. We _really_ do need to get some sleep."

"Funny business? Me? Honestly, Granger, it's like you think I'm some troublemaker or something."

Within seconds Draco was in nothing but his boxers and climbing into bed beside Hermione, who was all too aware of how little clothing there was between them. He was true to his word about the 'funny business', but that didn't stop him from kissing her, just once, before closing his eyes and going to sleep.

Hermione watched him as he slept beside her, staring at the handsome face of the wizard she desperately wanted to hate. On instinct, Hermione lifted her lips and brushed them against Draco's cheek. Her heart hadn't beat this fast since her first kiss with Ron. Looking at him one last time, Hermione sighed, closed her eyes, and finally went to sleep.

The moment she did, Draco opened his eyes, leaned down, and kissed her on the forehead. His heart had never beaten this fast before.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: The longer half of another split chapter. A familiar face shows up in this one. Hope you enjoy :-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The next morning all Draco wanted to do was stay in bed and kiss Hermione, but she was quick to toss out that idea. "We have a lot of ground to cover today, Malfoy. Time is precious and we don't want to waste any of it."

"What you call a waste I call a priority," he said, rolling her on top of him. "All I'm asking for is five minutes without any interruptions. Will you be so kind as to grant me this one request, Granger?"

Hermione smirked down at him and rolled her eyes. "Five minutes, Malfoy. That's it. I mean it."

Draco smirked back. "That's all I need." He stretched up and pressed his lips against hers.

_Pop_!

"Oh, _come on_!" he yelled, whipping towards the sound. "All I'm asking for is five bloody minutes!"

The small house-elf cowered where he stood. "Ruskle is sorry, Young Master. He will return in five minutes to make breakfast."

_Pop_!

"Now, where were we?"

Draco hugged his arms even tighter around Hermione's waist and pulled her as close to him as she could get. He rubbed himself against her, nibbling on her ear as she moaned gently, moving along her neck and down her collarbone, sneaking his lips just inside the top of her shirt to her breast –

Mr. Ollivander's owl swooped in and dropped two letters on top of them. Then it proceeded to peck Hermione in the head. "Ow!" she screamed. "What is it doing?"

Draco didn't stop. He was going to taste that breast if it killed him.

"Malfoy, quit it! The bloody owl is really hurting me."

Flipping her over so he was on top, Draco shielded her from the owl and said, "I can handle a little pecking."

But, sadly, the continuous jabs to his head were very distracting and Draco had no choice but to put everything back in place. He jumped out of the bed and started chasing the bird around.

Hermione looked after him and laughed. "Do you think the universe is trying to tell us something, Malfoy?"

"No!" he said, immediately stopping to point at her. "Do _not_ think like that. I already told you this," he motioned between them, "_is_ going to happen. We just need to find the right time."

"Well, we're alone in a tent for an entire night, yet, somehow, we still manage to be interrupted whenever we start anything. The signs are blatantly obvious, Malfoy. Someone somewhere _doesn't_ want this to happen."

"As long as it's no one here who bloody cares," he said, pouncing back on top of her, kissing her hungrily while the owl continued to peck at his head.

_Pop_!

"Ruskle is back, Young Master."

Draco grunted, giving Hermione one last kiss before dismounting her. Clearly, this wasn't going to happen _right now_.

During breakfast Hermione read her letter. It was from Ginny this week, who was continuously apologizing for her idiot brother:

_You know he is just afraid of losing you. I tell him every week that his letters are too dry and he should try harder, but he won't fix them. The truth is, Hermione, he is completely lost without you. If he's this bad after just three weeks, I shudder at the thought of how he'll be after three months._

_ By the way, how is it working with Draco Malfoy? Ron was too afraid to ask but you know I have no shame. Is it absolutely horrible? No one could blame you for wanting to come home early with that parasite working beside you._

_ I'd ask you if you found any summer romance yet, but since we both know Ron is going to read any response you send me, I'll refrain. But I expect all of the juicy details when you get back._

_ Now, on a brighter note (forgetting about my idiot brother), your bridesmaid dress came today. I cannot wait for you to try it on._

"What does Weasel have to say?" asked Draco over a bowl of oatmeal. He had asked Ruskle to keep it light that morning.

"Weaselette, actually," corrected Hermione. "She's just talking about wedding stuff -"

"_Ugh_, stop right there," he said, holding up his hand. "The last thing I want is to hear about Potty's upcoming nuptials while I'm eating. I'm not particularly fond of hurling."

Hermione went back to her letter. The rest was all about the wedding. She was sort of sad she was missing the last months of preparation. When she got back there would only be two weeks left before the big day. At least she wasn't missing the bridal shower. She and Fleur were throwing it themselves, Muggle-style.

Hermione jotted down a quick response, half to Ginny, and half to Ron. No longer motivated to try so hard, she basically told him he was an idiot and that he better get his head on straight before she got back. The last thing she wanted was to marry a grudge holder. If he was going to hold this break over her head for the rest of their lives they might as well call it quits now. But Hermione wasn't going to be quite so hasty about it. Ron still had time to redeem himself. And it had better be soon.

As soon as Hermione and Draco finished breakfast, they packed up their campsite and went on their way, but not before she grabbed his latest letter out of their wastebasket, moments before it magically disappeared. It _almost_ took her hand off. It was times like this Hermione missed the simple things in life, like garbage cans that didn't snap back at you.

The sun was high, the air was hot, and the day was long. Draco and Hermione were both cursed with fair skin and used every wizard remedy available to keep themselves from burning. Though, nothing was strong enough to stop them from getting a little rosy on their noses and shoulders.

Around lunchtime the two of them landed their broom in the middle of the sand – since there was nowhere else for them to go – and sat around miserably while trying to eat some energy bars. Both were too weak from heat exhaustion to try and stomach anything else.

Hermione used her wand to blow cool air on her and Draco – realizing her brilliance – did the same. They decided to stay off the broom and walk for a little while just to get their legs moving, which were already starting to feel like jelly.

"I hate to sound like Sophie, Granger, but it is _bloody_ hot out here. Any chance you'll carry me?"

"Not in the slightest," she said, crossing off another square on their map. "At this rate it will take days for us to search the entire desert. We might want to consider separating tomorrow. We can cover more ground that way. We can tell Sophie and Phillip to do the same."

"We're not all separating, Granger. You'd have to be mad to walk around in this hellhole on your own. We're staying in pairs."

Hermione raised her eyebrows at him. No one had ever told her what to do before, she always told them. She kind of liked it.

"Whatever you say, Malfoy. But I recommend we get back on the broom. The more area we cover the better." Hermione went around to Draco's back, unzipped his backpack and started digging through it, looking for their transportation.

A faint noise sounded in the distance. Draco's ears perked up. It sounded like a mix between a dog barking and a baby crying. "Did you hear something, Granger?"

"No. Where is that blasted thing?" she asked, sticking her whole head inside of the bag.

The noise came again. This time slightly louder. "It sort of sounds like howling. Is your stomach talking?"

"No, Malfoy, my stomach is _not_ talking, but you are. Did you put it in one of the side pockets?"

This time there was a definite howl, and it was getting closer. Draco looked to the sound and saw something golden flying at them, and it was coming fast. He gulped. It definitely wasn't sand.

"Granger, get the broom."

"I'm trying Malfoy, but I can't find it anywh –"

"Get-the-_bloody_-broom!"

"Malfoy, what –"

Within a flash Hermione was smack down on the ground with a mouthful of sand. She lifted her head just enough to see the backend of a large dragon with golden scales that looked a bit like a dry, cracked desert. Draco had pushed her down just in time to avoid the flames shooting out of its mouth.

"_Another_ one? You have got to be kidding me," she said, sitting up and digging through Draco's backpack even more aggressively. "Got it!" she shouted, pulling out a mop. "Oh, never mind."

"Give that to me, Granger," said Draco, taking the backpack from her.

"Why on earth do you have a Muggle mop, Malfoy?"

"Not the time," he said, finally pulling out the broom. "Let's go."

Draco pulled Hermione to her feet and the two of them jumped on the broom, taking off just before the dragon's second round of fire-breath could hit them. They headed in the direction it had come from, hopeful for some sort of landmark they could lose it in. But they could zig and zag all they wanted, in an open desert they weren't going to lose a dragon, and this one was especially fast.

"Why the bloody hell is there a dragon in the desert?" shouted Draco over the sound of wind rushing through their ears.

"Your guess is as good as mine!" Hermione shouted back.

Draco tried to fly more to the west, but the dragon came around their side and pushed them south. When they tried to go north again it pushed them back the way they came. Even with her fear, Hermione watched the beast curiously. It was almost like the dragon was guiding them away from something.

"Turn back around, Malfoy. We need to head northwest."

"Why? It seems like the dragon doesn't want us going that way."

"Exactly," she said, leaning in closer to him. "It's guarding something. Maybe even a fabled tree. Get it?"

"Got it," he said, flipping the broom around.

Draco maneuvered his way around the dragon, barely missing its flames. Hermione used the hat she had been wearing to extinguish a few sparks on the brooms bristles.

The dragon chased them, roaring even louder the further they flew in this direction. This only motivated Draco to fly faster. And then they saw it. At first they thought it was a mirage, but the closer they got the clearer it became. There, right in front of them, was a crisp, bright pool of water with a small tree in its center, shaped like a faint silhouette of a woman.

Just before they reached it the dragon picked up its pace, held out its claw, and knocked the back of their broom, sending Draco and Hermione flying off of it. At least this time there were no cliffs to fall into, but they still hit the sand pretty hard. It definitely wasn't a gentle fall.

The landing knocked the air out of Hermione. She lied on the ground and caught her breath for a moment before standing up. Draco was running and yelling at her from a hundred yards away. She couldn't understand him, but the roar behind her was enough of an indication as to what he was saying.

Hermione turned slowly, screaming in horror as the dragon flew towards her, his mouth wide open and shooting flames. There was no escaping it. This was surely the end.

And then, just when all hope was lost, Hermione was scooped up off the ground and onto someone's broom. She looked up to see Charlie Weasley smiling down on her. "Long time no see, Hermione. I'd ask what you're doing here, but I think we have more pressing matters at the moment."

Charlie helped Hermione climb to a more stable position on the broom. Once she was safely on it she looked around and saw that Charlie wasn't alone. Several other witches and wizards on brooms were flying around, using magical ropes to try and bind the dragon.

She looked around for Draco and saw that he was still on the ground, trying to reach their broom. Once he had it he flew into the air and beside Hermione and Charlie.

"You alright, Granger?" he asked.

"Yes, fine," she said. Charlie glanced sideways at Draco and then back curiously at Hermione. "Uh, Malfoy, have you ever met Charlie? He's Ron's brother."

"I suspected as much," he said, staring at Charlie's red hair. "But I don't believe we've ever had the pleasure."

Charlie ignored him. "Hermione, hold on tight for a second, will you? I have to go in and help them out." Finally looking to Draco, he added, "If you could do us a favor and distract the dragon, we would greatly appreciate it."

Hermione gulped. She had never heard Charlie sound so _unappreciative_ in all the years she'd known him.

But Draco didn't seem to notice. He nodded and flew off towards the dragon, circling in front of it until it started chasing him. While the dragon went after Draco, Charlie and his comrades remained on its tail, using their magical ropes, tied like lassos, to try and capture it. Charlie got his around the dragon's neck first, followed immediately by a pretty witch with dark-red hair and intense brown eyes.

Seeing this, Draco flipped around and flew underneath the dragon. The dragon, trying to follow him, ended up doing a somersault. While its feet were straight up in the air a hard-looking blonde witch swooped in and bound its hind legs together. Draco did another loop around and a blonde wizard – similar in appearance to the witch – was able to bind its front legs. The remaining wizard swung his lasso around the dragon's wings.

With the dragon immobile, the wizards and witches lowered it to the ground as gently as possible, but five humans holding up a ten ton dragon can never end _that_ gently, and they ended up having a pretty rough landing, but all of them managed to hold on to their grip.

While the five of them dealt with the dragon, Draco picked up Hermione and the two of them flew over to the tree. They landed on the small island in the oasis that housed the tree. Draco took out his blade and readied himself to cut off a branch but Hermione called him back.

"Wait, Malfoy. I've read something about this tree before. We can't just cut off a branch."

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because it will wither and die if we do. Watch," she said, plucking a twig from the tree. It turned to dust before their very eyes.

"Okay then. Cutting is out. What do we have to do then to get a branch?"

Hermione put down her backpack and dug through it until she found what she was looking for. She came out with her copy of _The Tales of Beedle the Bard._

"More fairytales? Really?" said Draco, rolling his eyes.

"I get the feeling every story in this book has a ring of truth to it. The one we are looking for is called, _The Muggle Woman Who Turned Into a Tree._

"Clever title."

Hermione ignored him and skimmed through the story, refreshing her memory on the tasks they must perform to receive a gift from the tree. "The story is about a Muggle woman who accidentally stumbled into the wizard desert while fleeing her abusive lover. As he gained on her the woman pleaded with her God to save her. She was overheard by a witch who willingly granted her wish, but at a price. She turned the woman into a tree and her lover passed her without a second glance. But turning her back would not be so simple. The woman was forced to wait in the desert as a tree until her true love found her, proving he is worthy of the woman's love by performing three tasks. Any man can try but only one can turn her human again. Those who fail can still receive a gift. If the tree judges them as worthy."

Draco looked at the tree and smiled. "I guess this is up to me then."

"Yes, I suppose you are the closest thing we have to a man." Hermione smirked.

Narrowing his eyes at her, Draco said, "Just tell me the first task, Granger."

Hermione looked back to the book and said, "This one's easy. You must give the tree water. But not from the oasis. The water here is bewitched and does not hold any real nourishment."

Draco unhooked his canteen from his belt, waved his wand over it, and poured it all around the trees roots.

"What did you do to it?" asked Hermione.

"Added a little extra nourishment. My mother has a lot of plants. Herbology was her favorite subject in school. I figured it couldn't hurt."

Hermione smiled at him. "That was really nice of you, Malfoy." Draco smiled back at her and the two shared a quick moment before Hermione looked back to the book. "Next you need to talk to the tree."

"Talk to it? You're making this up, aren't you?"

"I'm afraid not. Tell it a little bit about yourself."

Grunting, Draco turned to the tree and said, "Hello tree. My name is Draco Malfoy and I am a wizard, though I'm sure you already know that. This here is Hermione Granger. Together we are collecting items to make wands and, apparently, your wood is of certain value. We would love it if you shared some with us."

"I think it needs to be something more sentimental, Malfoy. Perhaps a story of love."

Draco grunted again. If only Phillip were here. Then he could be the one humiliating himself instead. "Well, I've never actually been in love so that is kind of hard. Though, some may say I fall in love every other week. It really depends on how you perceive it."

"Malfoy, no," said Hermione shaking her head. "Not that kind of love."

Draco smirked at her. Then, turning back to the tree, he said, "I wouldn't mind falling in love someday, preferably one like my parents share. While many see them as cold and heartless, I have been fortunate enough to see their softer side. They would do anything for each other, and for me. Both of my parents risked their lives during the war to find me, my mother even going so far as to lie to the most dangerous and powerful wizard of our time, if not all time. Love like that is rare. Hopefully we both find it someday, from someone other than our mothers," he laughed.

Hermione stared at Draco in wonder. She had never heard him speak so genuinely before. It was kind of nice to see the softer side of Draco Malfoy.

"What next, Granger?" asked Draco, clearly satisfied with his talk with the tree.

Without looking at the book, Hermione answered, "Last, you must give the tree the gift of kindness."

"What does that mean?"

Hermione shrugged. "I'm not sure. Try showing her some affection."

Draco cringed, but still stepped forward, eyed the tree, reached out and hugged it. Hermione could not fight back a snigger.

Draco leered at her. "You better shut your mouth, Granger, or else I might just come over there and – Ow!" The tree responded by dropping a branch on Draco's head.

"I guess that means she finds you worthy," said Hermione, laughing even louder.

Draco ignored her, released the tree and picked up the branch. When Mr. Ollivander's owl did not immediately swoop in and take it he put it away in his backpack.

"Hermione!"

They both turned to see Charlie running towards them. Behind him his four comrades were celebrating their victory over the dragon and taking turns snapping pictures with it.

When he arrived he leaped over the small body of water to the island, looked from Hermione, to Draco, to the tree, back to Hermione, and said, "If the two of you are finished hugging trees," Draco's cheeks turned bright red, "there is a wizarding town in the middle of this desert somewhere. We have the coordinates so we're all going to go find it and have a drink to celebrate. The two of you are welcome to join," he added, eyeing Draco skeptically.

Hermione smiled and said, "Thank you for the offer, Charlie, but we have two other friends out here we need to locate before we can do anything."

"Is that all?" said Charlie. Turning back to his comrades, he yelled, "Hey, Annaleigh! Get over here!" The pretty red-headed girl turned and ran over to them, leaping over the water as successfully as Charlie had. "Annaleigh, this is my brother, Ron's, girlfriend, Hermione Granger, and … umm … her _friend_, Draco Malfoy. Hermione, Draco, this is Annaleigh Gilbert."

Annaleigh smiled and held out her hand. "Pleasure to meet you all. But you don't have to be as formal as Charlie. Just call me Anna." They each took turns shaking her hand. When they were done, Annaleigh asked, "So what were you hugging the tree for?"

Draco blushed again and Hermione giggled. Charlie then said, "Hermione and Draco have two other friends wandering around somewhere. Would you be able to send them a message with the coordinates to the town we're going to?"

"Certainly!" said Annaleigh. "Do you have any parchment and a quill I can borrow?" Hermione reached into her backpack and pulled out the items, handing them to Annaleigh. The witch then proceeded to write down the coordinates, and a small message for them to meet up with their party at the local pub. After folding the letter into a fancy flower, Annaleigh asked, "What are their names? First and last please."

"Sophie Labelle and Phillip Prior," answered Hermione.

Annaleigh paused for a moment. "Phillip Prior," she repeated, writing both of the names down on the front of the folded parchment. "Not the Phillip Prior who was married to Chastity Hanson?"

Hermione looked to Draco. He shrugged. Turning back to Annaleigh, Hermione answered, "I'm not sure. I know he's divorced but I never learned his ex-wife's name."

"Did he used to work at a place called Thinx?"

Hermione nodded. "Yes. That is where he and Sophie met."

Annaleigh began to laugh. She used her wand to cast a spell on the letter and it went zooming off. "That should get to them alright. It is my own little trick I created during my fifth year when my parents refused to buy me an owl. I was too embarrassed to use the school ones." After a pause, she added, "I cannot believe he is traveling with _that_ Sophie. What a small world we live in."

"How do you know Phillip?" asked Hermione.

"Chastity is my cousin on my father's side," said Annaleigh. "We all called her a fool when she left Phillip for that bastard, Zandicus, but she was so convinced he was having an affair with his coworker, Sophie. I never believed it, but now I see it was true. Why else would they _still_ be working together?"

Draco began to laugh. "A coincidence, I assure you. The two of them could not be _less_ interested in each other."

Hermione nodded in agreement. "It's true. Phillip and Sophie have shown absolutely no interest in each other and we have all been traveling together for weeks."

"What are you all doing out here exactly? Other than trying to get eaten by a dragon?"

Draco opened his mouth to say something but Hermione shushed him. "I'm afraid we're not at liberty to say."

Charlie laughed. "Oh, relax, Hermione. My mum already told me you're working for Mr. Ollivander this summer, and you're in the middle of the desert collecting a branch from a tree. I think we can put two and two together."

"What is that thing, anyway?" asked Draco, motioning towards the dragon. "An Egyptian Inferno?"

"Or a Desert Destructor," added Hermione.

Charlie laughed. "Very good guesses, but I'm afraid this dragon has no name. It is one of a kind. But I'll pitch have to pitch both of those."

"So I guess we weren't the only ones following a fable," said Draco, looking to Hermione. "I don't know about you, Granger, but I could really use a pint. Shall we go to this wizarding village now?"

Before Hermione could answer, Charlie said, "We have to wait for the pickup crew to arrive, but you two can go on ahead. We won't be long."

"Yes, you both look positively dreadful," said Annaleigh. After repeating the words in her head, she added, "And I mean that in the nicest way possible. It just seems like you two have been out in the sun for too long, that's all. Being so fair myself, I completely understand. The sun does horrible things to - I mean -"

Charlie immediately put his hand over Annaleigh's mouth to shut her up. "There she goes again. Poor Annaleigh always has her foot in her mouth. You two go on. We will see you shortly."

Hermione nodded. Grabbing Draco's hand, the two of them apparated to the coordinates Annaleigh had shown them.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Part two. I really love this part, and Charlie Weasley!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

They arrived in the center of the village, and Mr. Ollivander's owl was circling above their heads.

Draco took out the branch and held it up for the owl to take. As soon as it did it dropped a letter at their feet. Hermione picked it up and read it.

Smiling, she said, "Mr. Ollivander is giving us the next two days off. We are free to do whatever, but he'd prefer it if we stayed together so we're ready to go the moment he gives us our next mission. And starting next week he'll be separating us."

Draco smirked. "Do you still think he'll be pairing us together? We haven't done a very good job of showing him otherwise."

Hermione smirked back. "Maybe so. But don't get too excited about it. I'm sure the universe will find other ways to make sure we're never alone."

Draco grunted. "Yes. I suppose the appearance of Weasel's brother means we won't be cuddling tonight."

"Unfortunately, yes," said Hermione. "You don't think Sophie will say anything, do you?"

"She might," said Draco honestly. "I wouldn't put it past her."

Hermione sighed. This was going to be an awkward night. Especially with the sudden appearance of Annaleigh. "Malfoy, did you notice that the name of the wizard Phillip's wife left him for was the same as their Muggle-hating boss's?"

"I did," said Draco. "It's hard to forget a name as horrible as Zandicus."

"Our first day off in a week and I can already tell it's going to be a horrible night," groaned Hermione.

Draco didn't disagree, but he was thinking more about his lack of snogging time than of Hermione or Phillip's troubles.

The two of them found the only inn in the small, wizarding town – just above the pub - and checked out four rooms. They snuck in five minutes of kissing time - their longest yet - before going downstairs to the pub. Charlie and his comrades were just walking in.

"Seven rounds of firewhiskey," he said, throwing several galleons onto the bar.

Hermione cringed. "I'm not sure if I should partake in that, Charlie. I'm not very good with alcohol."

"Come on, Hermione! We're celebrating!" shouted Annaleigh. "We all caught a one of a kind dragon, and you two caught ... a very nice branch from a tree that just needed a little loving," she added, winking at Draco.

The seven of them got a table and Charlie introduced the other members of his party. The blonde witch and wizard, who were similar in appearance, were actually brother and sister. They were from America and their names were Jennifer and Jason Cooper, or Jen and Jay.

The other wizard was a year behind Charlie at Hogwarts and was named Daniel Donovan. He was very good looking, and obviously knew it. Draco did not like the way he eyed Hermione but, somehow, he refrained from putting a protective arm around her. Charlie didn't like the way Daniel looked at her either, but for very different reasons.

A half hour after they all sat down, Sophie and Phillip came barging through the door, both looking as exhausted as Hermione and Draco had earlier that day.

"I need a drink!" shouted Sophie, dropping her backpack where she stood.

Hermione got up from her chair and picked up her bag. "I'll take you both to your rooms. Draco, get them a drink."

"I got it," said Charlie, standing up. "Firewhiskey work for the two of you?"

They both nodded and followed Hermione to their rooms. She looked over and noticed Annaleigh hiding behind her glass as Phillip walked by.

"Who are ze now?" asked Sophie the moment they got upstairs.

Sighing, Hermione told her, "Charlie, the red-head, is Ron's brother, and the others are his coworkers. They were, coincidentally, capturing a dragon that was guarding the tree we needed. Charlie showed up and saved me right before I became barbecue. We were lucky they were there."

"_Anozer_ dragon?" asked Sophie dramatically.

"Do you think it's karma?" asked Phillip, the faint glint of a smile curving on his lips.

Hermione sneered at him. "Despite that comment, I'm still going to warn you about the familiar face downstairs. I believe you already know Annaleigh Gilbert, your ex-wife's cousin, who seems to think you and Sophie are having an affair."

Phillip turned ghostly white. Narrowing her eyes, Sophie turned to Hermione and said, "Zat ees a lie! Chasteety would say anyzing to justeefy 'er 'orrible actions. She just wanted a reason for everyone to feel sorry for 'er when she left 'er 'usband for 'is boss. She ees a money grubbing 'ore!"

Phillip took a key from Hermione, entered his room and slammed the door.

Sophie snapped her head towards the sound, then immediately snapped it back towards Hermione. "See what you deed? Eet ees like you do not care about anyone but yourself!"

Taking the other key from Hermione, Sophie went into her own room, but before she could slam the door as dramatically as Phillip, Hermione slipped in after her.

"That's not fair, Sophie. I do care. That's why I told him. I didn't want him going down there blind. Annaleigh isn't exactly soft-spoken."

Sophie huffed at her before putting her stuff down. She then proceeded to change into some clean clothes, not even caring that Hermione was in the room.

Taking a seat on the bed, facing the opposite direction of a half-naked Sophie, Hermione said, "Sophie, please don't hate me. I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Draco and me. I truly am. But even you have to admit it's kind of an awkward conversation to start."

"Ze night een ze mountains when ze 'ouse-elf apparated me away, were you wiz 'im? Cuz Phillipe and I were comparing notes, and Draco deesappeared zat night." Hermione closed her eyes, let out a deep breath, and nodded. "Zat ees what I zought," said Sophie behind her. "You should 'ave told me."

"I know, and I'm sorry. But you have to believe me when I say I'm as shocked by this as you are. Maybe even a little embarrassed. I never thought in a million years I would ever have any sort of feelings for Draco Malfoy."

"You 'ave feelings for 'im?" asked Sophie, finally walking around to where Hermione could see her. "You mean zis ees not just a summer fling?"

"No!" shouted Hermione, waving her arms around frantically. "No, it is! I just meant my feelings for him are stronger than what I feel for Phillip. I really did try with him, but it just wasn't there."

"And eet ees zere wiz Draco?" asked Sophie, staring down at her with wide eyes.

Hermione shrugged. "I don't know. Every time we try to be alone we're interrupted. We haven't had enough time together to really see if there's anything yet."

"Yes, I suppose our eenteruption last night was a beet of a mood keeller. And now zat your boyfriend's brozer ees 'ere you won't get any time togezer tonight," said Sophie, sitting down beside her.

"Do you think it's a sign that we're not supposed to try this?" asked Hermione. "Maybe I'm not supposed to have a summer fling."

"Do not say zat!" shouted Sophie. "You wanted to 'ave fun zis summer and even I cannot deny zat you made ze perfect choice. But you are not ze type of girl to just 'ave a random fling. Maybe ze uneeverse just wants you to take your time."

Hermione smiled. She was happy to have Sophie back on her side. "I hope so."

"Come on," said Sophie, standing up and pulling Hermione with her. "Let's go perk up Phillipe, zen ze zree of us will go and get our drink on. And eef zat Annaleigh says anyzing, we weell beat ze weetch right out of 'er."

Hermione laughed. "Sounds good."

It took some persuading, but somehow the girls were able to get Phillip out of his room and down to the pub. He was going to show Annaleigh she was wrong about him, and she and her family could just shut their mouths.

Down at the pub, Draco was in the middle of some drinking game with Charlie, Daniel and Jay while the girls cheered them on. It was unclear who was winning. They all seemed to think it was them.

"'Ello Anna," said Sophie, taking a seat right beside the witch. "I 'aven't seen you een ages. 'Ow 'ave you been? Spreading lies, I 'ear."

Annaleigh shot a sharp look at Hermione, who drowned herself in the drink Draco had put in front of her.

Looking back to Sophie, she said, "I never said it was a fact or anything, just that Chastity believes it. Even you have to admit the two of you being here together is kind of suspicious."

"A mere coeencidence, I assure you. Right Phillipe?" she asked, turning to him.

"Uhh, right," he said taking a long, hard sip of his drink. After chugging most of the thing down he was finally brave enough to say, "Despite what your family thinks of me, I'm not the one who had an affair. I think that huge ring on her finger is proof enough."

"Eef you noteece, my finger ees bare," said Sophie, holding out her hand. She looked sideways at Daniel and gave him a cunning smile. Hermione chuckled into her drink. It was good to see Sophie hadn't lost her game.

As the night progressed Sophie forgot all about Annaleigh and focused all of her attention on Daniel, who was more than willing to focus all of his attention on her.

Draco was happy to see he had forgotten all about Hermione. But then every time he saw Jay talking to her he felt the need to interrupt. Jay was definitely less of a threat than Daniel, but Draco still didn't like it.

Somewhere during the night it became very clear that Annaleigh liked Charlie.

"Oh, what adorable leetle red 'eaded cheeldren you would 'ave!" shouted Sophie, leaving Daniel to chug drinks with the boys while she joined in the girls conversation.

Annaleigh laughed. "Yes, well, he'd have to notice me before that could happen. He barely knows I'm alive."

"Charlie's always been way more interested in dragons than he is in girls," said Jen. "It's kind of sad, actually."

Annaleigh sighed. "I've tried to tell him I like him a million times but he never quite seems to grasp it. Somehow the conversation always becomes about dragons. Just listen to him now."

They all did.

"So Draco, it's a shame you never considered working with dragons, considering your name means dragon and everything. That would have been epic."

"To be honest, other Weasley, working with dragons has never really been on the top of my list of things to do."

"Yes, I suppose hugging trees is much more your speed."

"And just what does that mean?" asked Draco, pushing himself into Charlie's face.

"Uh oh, ladies. Intervention time," said Jen.

All of them stood up and separated their particular wizard. Jen and Annaleigh pushed Charlie back while Sophie grabbed a hold of Draco. Hermione kind of floated between the two, unsure of which way she was supposed to go.

Seeing that Sophie had Draco under control, Hermione went over to where Charlie was downing another drink.

Without looking up from his glass, he asked, "Does Ron know you're working with him?"

"Yes," answered Hermione. "Look, Charlie, I know the Weasley's and the Malfoy's haven't exactly gotten along in the past -"

"His father almost got my sister killed."

"Yes, I recall, but you can at least give him a chance. He's not as bad as he used to be. I mean, even I'll admit he's no angel, but Draco's turned out alright, all things considered. It's just one night."

Charlie grunted, but said, "Alright, fine. I'll be decent to him. But you need to promise me you'll be careful around him."

"Why?" she asked innocently.

Charlie laughed. "Come on, Hermione. Surely you've even noticed how protective he is of you. He wants something. I can tell."

Hermione laughed it off like it was a joke, even though she knew he was dead on. "Is it the same thing Anna wants from you?"

Charlie rolled his eyes. "Now _that's_ funny. Annaleigh and I are just friends. If it weren't for dragons we'd have absolutely nothing in common."

Hermione had to bite her lip to stop from laughing. He really was that thick. Maybe it was a Weasley trait.

Turning back to the group, Hermione noticed Annaleigh was now talking ridiculously close with Draco. She could not hide her jealousy, or ignore the way her heart dropped.

Sophie ran up and blocked her face from everyone's view. "She 'as decided to make Charlie jealous. I tried to talk 'er out of eet but she ees determined."

"You don't think he'd ..." Hermione's voice trailed off. No, Draco would never fool around with another girl when she was right there. He had stopped flirting with Sophie for that very reason. But Sophie was there to stay, while Annaleigh would just be one night …

"Of course 'e would not, 'Ermione. 'E wants you. You can see eet een ze way 'e looks at you."

Right then, Annaleigh leaned up and kissed Draco. Right in front of everyone. Hermione's jaw dropped to the floor. Even though Draco pulled away, instinctually Sophie ran up to them and pulled Annaleigh back by her hair.

"What do you zink you are doing? Eef you like someone just tell zem! Do not keess someone else!"

While the girls quarreled, Draco looked to Hermione and tried to explain himself without anyone noticing. There was no good way to do this.

Phillip watched both of them laughing, drunk and alone in his own world. He had little interest in socializing. Charlie, Jay, and Daniel all had their own bond, Jen wasn't exactly his type, Annaleigh was his ex-wife's cousin, and Sophie was the reason his wife claimed to have left him. Really, the only person there that night of any interest to him was Hermione, and she was so focused on whatever was going on between her and Draco she barely noticed anything else. Especially now.

"Relax Hermione," he said, pulling her down into the seat beside him. "We both know that wasn't his doing. Now, put on your poker face for your boyfriends brother over there."

"We're on a break," she said, mainly for herself. "I'm allowed to see other people."

"But you're embarrassed it's Draco, aren't you?"

"No!" She thought about this. "Well, yes, but only because their families don't like each other. Even if it were someone else I wouldn't want to publicize it."

"Someone like me?" he asked, taking another sip of his drink.

Hermione glanced sideways at him. "I hope you don't take this personally, Phillip. I do you like you, but -"

"But you like him more," he finished for her.

"I don't know if _like_ is the right word for it. No one gets under my skin the way he does."

Phillip laughed. "It's called passion, Hermione. The two of you have it. The truth is, I've always noticed, and so has Sophie, but we chose to ignore it. The two of you were pretty much our only options for fun this summer. And I think Sophie's ruining any shot she had with that Daniel guy for your sake right now."

Hermione looked over and saw that Sophie had her arms wrapped tightly around Draco's neck while Annaleigh batted at her.

"Stop trying to keess my man!"

"He wasn't your man an hour ago! You did this exact same thing at Phillip and Chastity's wedding! That groomsman liked me!"

Sophie laughed hysterically. "Not once I was zrough wiz 'im!"

Hermione looked over to Daniel, who was staring at Sophie with narrow eyes. He chugged down the rest of his drink, slammed the glass down on the table, and got up to flirt with the barmaid, a gorgeous African girl with light eyes. Before Sophie and Annaleigh's squabble even ended, he disappeared upstairs with her.

Hermione frowned. "Well, to be fair, he seems like a bit of a jerk. Sophie can do better."

"So can you," said Phillip, finishing the last of his drink. "I'm going to bed. See you in the morning, Hermione."

Phillip got up from his seat and headed for the stairs. Annaleigh - forgetting all about Draco and Sophie - ran after him.

"Phillip, wait! Can I talk to you for a minute?"

The two of them disappeared outside.

Deciding it was also time for bed, Hermione said goodnight to Charlie and headed upstairs, Draco watching her the entire way.

In her room, Hermione had barely changed her clothes when there was a loud '_Pop_!' behind her. She whipped around to see Draco standing by the door.

"If anyone asks, I slept in Sophie's room tonight."

He immediately rushed her, pinning her against the wall. Unable to keep their balance, the two of them fell clumsily onto the bed, both panting heavily as Draco tore off his shirt. He was just about to tear off hers when she stopped him.

"Draco, wait. I just want to be very clear that you and I are _not_ having sex tonight. I'm still not sure if I want to go that far."

Draco grunted, but agreed. "So, just to be even clearer, how far can we go? Because I'm willing to push my limits."

Hermione thought about this. "Well, definitely kissing … and some light touching. And you should keep your shirt off." She smiled.

Draco raised his eyebrows suggestively. "Ah, you like this, Granger? Alright then. How about a game of, 'if I show you mine, you show me yours'."

Hermione did not object as Draco pulled her shirt off, finally finding a moment to give her breasts the attention they deserved.

While the light touching became slightly heavier than she had originally anticipated, Hermione was, once again, reassured that choosing Draco was the right choice.

After all, how could someone who made her moan like that from a little over the clothes touching be wrong?


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: M rating finally in effect. Nuff said ;-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The next morning Hermione and Draco woke up to the sound of a '_Pop_!' in their room. They both shot up groggily to see Sophie dancing around with one hand over her eyes.

"Sorry to wake you, but I want to get an early start on our two days off, and I cannot exeet my room wizout my lover wiz me."

"I'll be right there," said Draco with a yawn.

"Okay, yay!" shouted Sophie before disapparating.

Draco, whose arms were already around Hermione, squeezed her tight and gave her a small but tender kiss before getting up and putting his clothes back on.

He went back to the bed and gave her one more peck before disapparating. Not even a minute later Hermione heard Sophie's door open and her dancing down the halls.

"Wake up, 'Ermione! Eet ees a brand new day!" she said, poking her head into Hermione's door and giving her a wink. She then skipped across the hall. "Wake up Philli - AHH!"

Hermione immediately jumped out of bed and ran into the hallway. Sophie was running out if Phillip's room with both hands over her eyes while Draco peeked in and laughed.

"I am blind! I am blind! Oh, ze 'orrors I 'ave seen!"

Hermione rushed over and pushed past Sophie and Draco into Phillip's room. He was beside his bed, pulling on his clothes while Annaleigh was on the other side doing the same. When she saw Hermione she tripped on her pants leg and fell to the floor.

"Do you _all_ have to be in here?" she yelled from the ground.

"Sorry," said Hermione, chuckling.

She tried to shut the door but, suddenly, Charlie was beside her. Annaleigh turned twenty shades of red when she saw him. Still pulling her shirt back on, she ran out of the room and into her own, almost knocking over Daniel's barmaid as they passed in the hallway.

Sophie was now lying spread-eagle on the floor while Draco fanned her. "Ze 'orror! Ze 'orror!"

"Don't be so dramatic, Soph," said Phillip, kicking her side. "There are worse people to see naked than me or Anna."

Just then, a plump woman came out of a room down the hall, covering her face. Shortly after that Jay came out of the same room.

"What's all the ruckus out here?"

"Ask 'im!" shouted Sophie, shooting up from the ground and pointing at Phillip. "She ees your ex-wife's couseen! 'Ave you no shame?"

"Well, she definitely doesn't think I'm fooling around with you anymore," he said with a wink.

Just then Jen came out of her room, holding hands with a wizard Hermione didn't recognize.

"Morning everyone. This is my boyfriend, Andrew. He flew over last night to surprise me," she said with googly eyes.

"Looks like you and I are the only ones not taking the walk of shame," laughed Charlie into Hermione's ear.

Hermione tried to laugh back but even she knew it sounded a bit awkward. Unbeknownst to anyone but her party, she was also partaking in the walk of shame, though her walk was far less shameful than Phillip's.

XXX

"I cannot believe you sunk zat low!" said Sophie to Phillip over the breakfast table, squirting the last of her Purple Polly Flowers onto a piece of toast.

"Uh, _hello_, Sophie, I'm sitting right here," said Annaleigh from across the table.

"I am aware. You should be ashamed."

"You know, for someone who never had an affair with him, you sure are taking this hard."

The two witches scowled at each other, Sophie taking a large bite of her food as she did so.

"Phillipe ees my friend and you, clearly, come from a loose fameely. Maybe I should just write to Chasteety right now and tell 'er what you deed."

"Don't you dare!" shouted Annaleigh, rising from the table.

"Soph, do us all a favor and shut your mouth," said Phillip, pulling Annaleigh back down to her seat. "Writing an angry letter isn't the solution to everything."

Sophie shot him a sharp look before glancing sideways at Hermione, who was too engulfed in her waffles to notice anything.

"So where did you want to go during our time off anyway, Sophie?" asked Draco, caring very little about the current topic.

Sophie immediately shifted gears, becoming all smiles. "Well, first I need to go back to ze field to get more flowers. Now zat I know of zeir exeestence I cannot leeve wizout zem. After zat I say we all go to ze Souz of France. My fameely 'as a chateaux zere we can all stay een for some rest and relaxation."

"Oh, that sounds lovely," said Hermione, finally looking up from her food. "I was afraid you wanted us to go to some big city for shopping."

"I am not saying zere won't be any shopping," said Sophie, "but even I need a break every now and zen."

"Where are all of you off to?" Hermione asked Charlie.

"Back to Romania to deal with that dragon. What were your name recommendations again?"

"Egyptian Inferno," said Draco over his coffee.

"_Or_ Desert Destructor," added Hermione.

"'Ow about ze Sand Doom! Get eet? Like sand dune, only doom!" Sophie was alone in her laughter. She frowned at everyone around the table. "What? Like your suggestions were any better?"

After breakfast everyone went up to their designated rooms and got ready to leave. On her way out Hermione ran into Charlie in the hallway.

"Hey, Charlie, do you mind if I ask you something about dragons?"

"Sure," he said, his eyes instantly lighting up.

"If one needed to, how would they extract a heartstring from a dragon? I've been looking through all of my books and can't find a clear answer anywhere. Most seem to think you have to kill one and I'm not exactly willing to do that."

"Most aren't," he said. "But I'm sorry, Hermione, I don't really know of any other way. I've heard rumors of a spell you can cast but I've never actually met anyone who's used it. I'm sure Mr. Ollivander knows. He hasn't told you anything?"

"No," said Hermione, visibly disappointed. "He's not exactly forthcoming. Well, thanks anyway, Charlie. And thank you for saving me yesterday. I'd probably be dead if it wasn't for you."

Charlie laughed. "Well, we both know Ron would murder me if I let anything happen to you. It might be best not to mention your flirting with death to him." Just then, Draco walked into the hallway, looked to Hermione, and smiled. "Or your flirting with anyone for that matter."

Hermione turned back to Charlie horrified. "What does that mean?"

He glanced sideways at her and gave a half-smile. "Despite what you think, I'm not quite as thick as Ron. I don't know if that whole thing with '_the dragon_' and Sophie is legit, probably not, but I do know he has feelings for you. And, judging from your face last night when Annaleigh kissed him, the feelings are mutual."

"Charlie … Please -"

"Don't worry. I'm not going to tell Ron. Just don't do something you're going to regret. I know my brother can be an idiot, but he means well. And he loves you."

"Shall we head out then?" asked Draco approaching them, completely oblivious to the awkward moment.

Hermione looked to Charlie one more time before nodding. Everyone else came out of their room's right on cue and both groups headed outside to take their leave.

Phillip and Annaleigh gave each other a civil handshake before going their separate ways, and Daniel snuck his information into Sophie's hand when he thought Draco wasn't looking. Sophie pretended to toss it, but Hermione saw her secretly pocket it.

After Hermione gave Charlie a hug goodbye, the five dragon hunters mounted their brooms and headed for Romania. Once they were gone, the other group pulled out their two brooms. Draco and Hermione climbed onto one, but Sophie and Phillip were arguing over who got to fly the other.

"Maybe during our break we should pick up two more so we each have one," suggested Hermione. "It would really come in handy, especially when escaping the fiery breath of a dragon."

"Good idea, 'Ermione," said Sophie, whipping the broom out of Phillip's hands and climbing onto the front. "But, until zen I zink ze only one of us 'o deed not get lucky last night should get to fly eet."

Phillip rolled his eyes, but still climbed onto the back of the broom. With everything settled, the four of them took off and flew towards the mountains near Hogwarts.

It took nearly half a day to get there, but the joy on Sophie's face while she danced through the thousands of Purple Polly Flowers made it all worth it. Once she was satisfied with the amount of flowers she picked, they all headed to Hogsmeade and used the Floo network to get to Sophie's family's chateaux in the South of France, which turned out to be in a small Muggle town called Gault.

The chateaux had five bedrooms. Sophie took the master, of course, while Phillip took one of the other three upstairs. Hermione and Draco took the only one downstairs, since it was the most private – other than the master.

Once they were all settled, Sophie went to the market in town where she bought every sort of food, spices and herbs imaginable.

Back at the chateaux she immediately started cooking. "I am going to make all of you a 'omecooked meal, just like my grandmozer used to make. Absolutely no mageec allowed," she said, putting her wand on the table.

While she went to work, Draco and Phillip took the Floo to the closest wizarding street to pick up a couple secondhand brooms. Hermione stayed with Sophie and sat on the counter while watching the witch at work.

"Wow, Sophie. I'm really impressed you know how to do all of this. My mom always wanted to teach me how to cook, but after I found out I was a witch I never really had the time."

Hermione sometimes regretted what little time she had spent with her family over the last decade. During her years at Hogwarts she often spent Christmas' at the school with Harry and Ron, and summers at The Burrow with the Weasley family. Then, after the war, she and Ron got a place together. There really wasn't much time to learn simple Muggle things, like cooking.

"I could teach you eef you would like," said Sophie, smiling.

By the time the boys got back Hermione was an expert chopper. Tomatoes, peppers, and even onions were no match when it came to her and a kitchen knife.

"You sure know how to handle that," said Draco, coming over and hugging her from behind. He stayed there with his chin on her shoulder while she finished off the rest of her onion.

"It smells great, Soph. What are you making?" asked Phillip, tossing a piece of a tomato into his mouth."

"Oh, I am just zrowing some zings togezer," she said. "But ze main course ees feesh, wiz pasta on ze side."

While Hermione continued to help Sophie with dinner, the boys decided to make something for dessert. They tried to take out their wands but Sophie forbade them. This was going to be a complete meal without any magic.

Groaning, Draco translated one of Sophie's family's French cookbooks for Phillip. They eventually decided on a chocolate mousse. Sophie tried to talk them out of it, since it would need time to set, but they were already decided.

"The recipe says it only needs to chill for one hour. It will take us about that long to eat," said Draco, staring at the recipe.

"Only one hour? Zat does not seem right. Most recipes call for at least four."

"If it's not set then we'll just wait a little longer. Drink some more wine," said Phillip, already opening a bottle they had picked up in town.

Giving up, Sophie graciously accepted a glass of wine from Phillip and went on with her cooking. The boys then proceeded to make their chocolate mousse.

They put the finished mousses into the refrigerator just as Sophie was putting the finishing touches on the table.

The food lay around it, garnished with herbs on golden serving trays. There were two enchanted candles burning in the air on either end of the table and each place was set with golden napkins, a spoon, knife and way too many forks. Hermione had picked some flowers from the garden outside and arranged them in a crystal vase for their centerpiece. The entire thing was a vision.

"This looks wonderful, Soph," said Phillip, taking a seat at the head of the table. Draco sat at the foot of it and the girls were on either side.

"Hopefully eet tastes wonderful," she said nervously. "Eet 'as been a lot of year's seence I 'ave done zis."

The food tasted even better than it looked. All of them praised Sophie, who was more than gracious.

The four of them laughed the night away over several bottles of wine. The highlight of the night was when Phillip gave them a recap of how Annaleigh ended up in his bed.

"It was the strangest thing. She told me she needed to talk to me, so the two of us went outside. She started talking about her family being so judgmental, but her being on my side. I don't really remember. I wasn't exactly listening. Then we went upstairs and she asked to come in my room for a bit. I didn't really think anything of it so I said alright. The moment the door was closed she pounced on me. I pushed her off at first, but Annaleigh isn't exactly bad looking," they all nodded in agreement, "and I caved. I think part of me kind of hopes it will get back to Chastity."

"I can take care of zat," said Sophie, smiling mischievously into her glass of wine.

"Thanks, Soph, but I think it will be better if you didn't. It seems like something Chastity would do and I don't want to sink to her level."

"So, tell us the truth," said Draco, leaning closer on the table. "Did the two of you _really_ have an affair?"

"Draco!" shouted Hermione, reaching over to hit him. "That is none of our business!"

"Of course we deed not!" said Sophie, looking over at Phillip. The two exchanged sly grins.

"What was that then?" asked Draco, catching their exchange.

Phillip laughed, ran a hand through his hair, and said, "Well, we never had an affair, but there was this one night … It was right after I found out about Chastity and Zandicus, which was also the day we both lost our jobs."

"Oomph, bad day," said Hermione, crinkling her nose.

"Yes, well, it was bad for both of us," he said motioning to Sophie, "so I suppose we might have found comfort in each other's -"

"_Arms_," finished Sophie. "But we deed not 'ave sex."

"No, we didn't," repeated Phillip. "But we might have done … other things." The two of them exchanged another grin, but neither clarified what 'other things' meant.

Once they were all finished picking at their dinner, Draco went to check on their dessert.

"I think they're set!" he called from the inside of the refrigerator.

He grabbed them all and carried them to the table. They each took one and picked up their spoons. In unison they all dipped into their mousses and took a bite.

The disgusted looks on their faces were instantaneous. Sophie held her hand over her mouth to keep from hurling, Hermione did everything she could to keep any more from going down her throat while Draco and Phillip both looked like they had just smelt something rotten. Draco was the first to spit his bite into his napkin. The others soon followed.

"Oh, zank Merlin!" said Sophie, downing the rest of her wine to get the taste out of her mouth. "'Ow do you ruin chocolate mousse like zat? Eet ees so seemple."

"I've never seen anything separate like that before," said Hermione, digging her spoon in deeper. The top layer looked all right, but the center was all liquefied and below that was something crusty.

"Clearly Draco and I were not meant for Muggle cooking."

"Zis ees not even cooking! Zis ees mousse!"

"Do you think it's because you're both purebloods?"

"I think it's because neither of us ever read a recipe before," said Draco.

"And probably never should again," laughed Sophie. Everyone else joined in. It was pretty funny.

As a substitute dessert, Sophie made croissants and served them with her Purple Polly Flowers. It took a bit longer but it was worth it.

The four of them didn't go to bed around two in the morning. While Draco and Hermione kissed for a little bit after climbing into bed, both were too tired to do much more than that.

But the next morning was a different story. Draco woke up in great spirits, and did the same for Hermione by nibbling on her ear.

When she opened her eyes he moved on top of her. He began to caress her lips with his, then slowly moved down to her neck, massaging it gently before sliding his tongue along her collarbone, then removing her shirt so he could focus on her breasts. But then he kept going, tracing his tongue down her ribcage and to her stomach, taking a moment to give her a small peck below her bellybutton. Then he proceeded to -

"Draco, wait!" said Hermione, pulling his head back up to hers. "Not yet."

"Why?" he asked, moving back down and kissing her inner thigh. "You don't want me to?"

Hermione's face contorted as she tried to fight back a moan. "It's not that …" He proceeded to pull her bottoms down. She bit her lip … "I just … think we should - _Oh_!"

It was too late. The moment Draco moved in he knew she had caved. The sounds coming from her were more than enough proof he was doing right. Surely better than anything Weasel could do.

At one point Hermione grabbed a pillow and threw it over her face to stifle her screams. Even when she was finished she did not want him to stop, but she knew he had to. If he didn't there was no telling what she might do. While she was definitely getting closer, Hermione still wasn't ready to go all the way with Draco Malfoy. But she knew she would be soon.

When she was done, Draco popped his head up and asked, "Next time, my turn?"

Hermione laughed before taking the pillow she was holding and smacking him in the face with it. Draco grabbed and stole it from her, playfully knocking her several times before picking her up and throwing her over his shoulder, Neanderthal style.

He carried her into the bathroom where he turned on the shower, threw her in, undressed himself and followed.

Hermione could hardly believe that just two days ago she was shy about him seeing her naked. Now, not only was he seeing her, but she was seeing him, and he definitely wasn't bad to look at.

Very little cleaning was done during the first half of their shower. Quite the contrary. After a little nibbling, a little touching, and a lot of kissing, Draco finally got his turn. Not quite in the way he'd hoped, but he wouldn't dare complain. As it turned out, Hermione had a really good grip. She would have made an excellent Quidditch player.

After their shower, Hermione and Draco were surprised to find swimming suits waiting for them on their bed. Hermione's was a tad too small for her taste, and Draco's was a tad too _'European'_, to say the least.

"Sophie, I am not wearing these," he said, barging into the kitchen where Sophie was eating a leftover croissant in her own tiny swimsuit. Hermione suddenly felt very self conscious. There was no way she looked that good in such a small amount of clothing. Draco had to be regretting his choice.

"Eet ees all I 'ave. Phillipe already called deebs on ze trunks."

Just then, Phillip walked in wearing nothing but his newly acquired swimming trunks, showing everyone his God-like chest. Hermione could not help but take a quick peek. Unfortunately, Draco noticed, scowled at Phillip, and exited the room.

Holding up her itty bitty bikini, Hermione asked, "Is this really all you have for me too? Your family doesn't wear one pieces?"

Sophie laughed. "Of course we do not, 'Ermione. We do not need to. And neizer do you. Now go and get changed. I do not want to meess ze sun."

Hermione wasn't happy about it, but she did as she was told. Draco was not as compliant. He refused to wear the Speedo but agreed to buy more appropriate swimwear when they arrived at their destination.

Once everyone was ready Sophie guided them all outside and into her family's Muggle car. Even though she had never gotten around to getting her Apparition license, she had still managed to get her driver's license.

Draco had never ridden in a Muggle car before. It was kind of exhilarating. "My father would kill me if he knew," he said with a hollow laugh.

Hermione reached over and put her hand in his. She had meant to be comforting, but Draco had no way of knowing that. He was still unaware she knew about his father's illness - whatever that might be - and he mistook the gesture. He stared at her hand clasped in his blankly for a moment, before leaning over and giving her a kiss.

"Eww," said Sophie, watching them in the rearview mirror. "Save eet for ze bedroom."

"Or the shower," said Phillip, winking back at them.

Hermione blushed bright crimson while Draco smiled proudly.

The day was still young when they arrived in Cassis, a beautiful commune on the Mediterranean. It was a popular for Muggle tourism, which was exactly what Sophie wanted.

"We need a break from wands and brooms and _dragons_!" she yelled animatedly. "Today I just want to be normal."

Sophie and Phillip went down to the water to find a good spot while Hermione helped Draco find some swimming trunks. It didn't take them long, but when Draco started reaching for his galleons, Hermione quickly stopped him.

"Muggle town. Remember?" she whispered, pulling out a piece of plastic and handing it to the cashier.

On their way out, Draco asked, "What the bloody hell was that?"

"That was a credit card," explained Hermione. "Muggles use it instead of money sometimes."

"Why?" he asked, not understanding these strange Muggle ways.

"It's complicated," said Hermione. "My parents gave me one in case of emergencies. I guess this counts."

When they arrived at the beach, both were surprised to see it was covered in millions of tiny rocks instead of sand. Sophie was already busy sunbathing while Phillip was doing laps a little ways out.

"'E ees such a show off," said Sophie as Hermione and Draco set their towels beside hers. "A couple of Muggle girls smiled at 'im and ze next zing I know 'e ees out zere sweemming."

"Seems to be working," said Draco, noticing several girls down by the water watching him in awe.

Hermione and Draco went down to the water, but neither of them cared to swim laps. At first Hermione only dipped her feet since the water was beyond freezing, but Draco wouldn't hear of it. He picked her up and threw her into the waves, but she kept her grip on him and both ended up soaked.

After that first jolt of icicles poking into them, they adjusted to the water and started to have some fun. Draco chased Hermione through the waves, both of them tripping and falling along the way, but neither cared.

At one point Draco grabbed Hermione by the waist and swung her around while she kicked at the water. When he put her down she turned around and threw her arms around his neck, instinctually leaning up and giving him a kiss. When she pulled away she looked into his warm gray eyes and smiled.

Poking him in the nose, she said, "I think that desert sun gave you some freckles. I don't remember seeing those before. They're actually kind of cute."

"I'm cute, Granger," he said, poking her own freckly nose. "I just hope my newfound freckles don't remind you of Weasel."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Well, they do now."

"Then let me help you forget him," he said, cupping her chin in one hand and tilting her head up towards his lips. Their mouths had barely touched when they were hit by an extremely large wave, both of them falling over, laughing as they climbed back to their feet.

While Phillip was busy talking to Muggle girls, Sophie dragged Hermione and Draco on a boat tour of the calanques with her.

After that Draco went back down to the water while Sophie and Hermione did some souvenir shopping.

Hermione picked out a photo frame for her parents, a necklace for Ginny, t-shirts for Harry and Ron, and a keychain for Mr. Weasley. He absolutely adored little trinkets like that.

Once the girls were done with their shopping, they grabbed the boys and headed back to the chateaux.

As soon as they got back Phillip and Sophie jumped into their separate showers. The Muggle girls Phillip had been talking to earlier had invited him to the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence and Sophie was going too. Hermione and Draco had chosen to stay behind.

When they left Draco took Hermione outside with both of their brooms and gave her some flying lessons. Just in case they had to make another quick escape from a fire-breathing dragon.

Sophie had already told them the entire area was charmed, so there was no chance of Muggle's spotting them.

Together the two of them flew around the chateaux and into the vineyards, or, what Sophie liked to call, 'a great Muggle eenvestment'.

When Hermione got sick of flying she made a very clumsy landing in the middle of one of the rows of vines and proceeded to hide from Draco.

"Granger!" he called from the air above her. "Where'd you go off to?"

Draco landed right by where she was hiding and looked around. Hermione ran out of the vines and tackled him.

The two of them fell to the ground laughing. Wrapping his arms around her waist, Draco rolled around in the dirt until he was on top of her, proceeding to give her a million kisses on her cheeks and nose.

Then his lips found their way to hers. He kissed her with everything he had, all of the passion that had been building up inside of him seeping out of his very core. Hermione kissed back with the same fire, stroking her hands along his back until they found their way into his hair, pulling at the soft blonde locks from their roots, trying to hold back all that was burning inside of her.

Draco moved his hand into the Muggle skirt Sophie had leant her or - as he liked to call it - a blessing in disguise. Witches normally didn't wear clothes with such easy access. Maybe there was more to this Muggle lifestyle than he thought.

Hermione let him touch her, arching her back as he found just the right spot, but when he tried to remove her bikini bottoms she stopped him.

Draco let out a frustrated growl. "What now, Granger? This back and forth of yours is really getting old." Hermione's face fell, her eyes filled with hurt and confusion. Draco looked into them and sighed. "Sorry. I didn't mean it like that. Just … tell me what's wrong."

"I'm sorry, Draco. I really don't mean to frustrate you. I just don't know if I can do this."

"Why not?" he asked.

Looking away from him, Hermione shyly said, "I know this won't exactly come as a shock, but Ron's the only guy I've ever been with. I just don't know if I'm ready to let that go."

Draco laughed. "Is that all? Honestly, I'm surprised you even have one notch on your belt. Didn't think Weasel had it in him."

"If you think insulting Ron is going to seduce me, _you_ have another thing coming."

"Point taken," he said, leaning down and kissing her in a way he knew would make her forget all about Ronald Weasley. He brushed his fingers along the top of her bikini bottoms.

Hermione stopped him again.

"Okay, Granger, stop doing that for a second and listen, will you?" Hermione froze and waited for him to go on. "You keep stopping me because you're afraid of sleeping with more than one person in your life. Why don't you just relax, stop thinking, and don't stop me until you feel this is wrong."

Hermione bit her lip and thought about this. "So ... If I say the word -"

"I'll stop," he finished. "No questions asked. But _only_ when it feels wrong. Just get that Weasel out of the back of your mind and enjoy yourself. I promise you won't regret it."

Hermione sighed before looking back into Draco's eyes and nodding. Smiling satisfactorily, Draco went back to kissing her, moving his hand around the inside of her skirt.

Hermione moaned gently and nibbled on his bottom lip. Her hands moved towards the shorts he was still wearing and undid them, slightly chuckling at the sound of ripping Velcro.

Draco moaned into her ear, biting all along her neck while his nails dug into her back. For someone with such little experience she was really good at this.

Before long Hermione's bikini bottoms were off and Draco positioned himself more on top of her. Even as he teased her he waited for her to tell him to stop, but she never did.

It wasn't until she pulled his head down to hers by the hair and whispered, "Do it now," that he finally found the courage to go on, and before they knew it, Draco Malfoy was having sex with Hermione Granger.

He moved back, pulling her with him so she was straddling his lap. Their hips moved in perfect sync as their sweaty bodies continued to caress each other. He pushed her curly hair out of the way and nipped at the nape of her neck while she continued to pull at his hair, afraid that if she let go she might not be able to control herself any longer, and Hermione hated not being in control.

But then she felt it, that moment of ecstasy where even muscle in your body tenses, her hands gripping onto him even tighter to keep herself from falling to the ground. But Draco was right there with her, and when she fell weak so did he. He lied back on the ground, pulling her with him. She landed with her head on his chest and stayed there for a moment to catch her breath.

She had done it. She had finally found out what it was like to be with someone other than Ron. And she wasn't going to lie. It felt _really _good.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who's read this far! I didn't plan on this story being novel length, but it looks like that's what's going to happen, haha.**

**I've been thinking about using a beta but don't really know how to go about finding a good one. Any recommendations or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!**

**Also, I've been thinking about changing the name to 'Heartstrings of a Dragon'. When I first uploaded it I hadn't come up with a name yet and wrote down the first thing that came to mind. But I have always thought 'Summer of the Dragon' was a little lame. Don't know if the new one's any better, haha. Thoughts and suggestions?**

**Lastly – and most importantly - I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Several hours later, Hermione and Draco had found their way back to the chateaux. They were in their bed, somewhere in the middle of round three when they heard the front door open and then slam, followed by many obscene words in French.

"Uh oh. Sounds like trouble," said Hermione, already moving off of him. Draco groaned but followed suit.

She reached into her backpack, eventually coming out with a green robe she threw on. Draco looked at it and smiled. "Green suits you, Granger. Maybe you should have been a Slytherin after all."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Not in a million years, Malfoy. Besides, even if for some odd reason I wanted to be a Slytherin, they'd _never_ have me. You should know that better than anyone."

Hermione went on ahead of him, since Draco still needed a moment to 'cool off'. She proceeded to the living room where Sophie was yelling at a passive Phillip, who was sitting on the couch.

Sophie didn't even hear her approach but Phillip turned hopefully and asked, "Do you have any idea what she's saying?"

Hermione chuckled. "You don't want to know. What did you do?"

Phillip rolled his eyes and shook his head. "_I_ didn't do anything. It's not my fault I'm _completely_ irresistible."

"What -"

"Hey, is there any reason those two members of other Weasel's dragon loving cult are waiting on our doorstep?" asked Draco, walking into the room, now wearing some green pajama bottoms. Hermione looked at them and frowned. She could not believe he had purposely made the two of them look like a matching set. Or maybe it was subconscious. Either way she was annoyed.

Sophie froze, instantly shutting her mouth, and looked from Hermione to Draco. After a long, awkward pause she squealed, leapt into the air and ran over to Hermione.

"Oh-My-Merlin! You two totally deed eet!"

"What?" asked Hermione, turning bright crimson. Draco just smirked.

"You deed! I can tell! Ze air around you ees completely deeferent! Your first time wiz your _fling_! 'Ow deed eet feel? Were zere fireworks?"

"Uhh ... So who is outside, now?" said Hermione, quickly changing the subject. Doing it with Draco was one thing, but talking about it was a completely different matter entirely.

Sophie's smile became a scowl as she shot a sharp look at Phillip. "Ask 'im!"

Phillip got up from the couch and walked over to the others. "This is not my fault. Sophie here used Floo powder this morning to invite that Daniel guy here. He met us in Aix but, for some reason, Anna came with him. She completely ruined my game with those Muggle girls. Daniel says she followed him."

"She knew 'e was coming 'ere! Don't you dare sleep wiz 'er again, Phillipe!"

"Don't tell me what to do, Soph!"

Sophie's jaw dropped. Phillip had never raised his voice at her before. She snapped. "'Ow dare you speak to me zat way! I am only concerned for your benefeet!"

She turned dramatically, her hair whipping Phillip in the face as she ran out of the room with tears in her eyes. Hermione and Draco looked at each other awkwardly.

"Are you really gonna shag her again, mate?" asked Draco, turning his attention away from the crying girl.

Phillip sighed. "I never said that. This is just a really complicated situation."

"But you need to be honest, Phillip," said Hermione, trying to be the voice of reason. "If you did 'shag' her again, would it be because you like her, or because you want revenge on Chastity?"

"Neither," answered Phillip. "I just really wanna shag. Only done it a handful of times since the divorce, and that was almost two years ago."

"Then I say go for it, ma -"

"Malfoy!" yelled Hermione, giving him a stern look. Then, turning back to Phillip, she said, "I told you to be honest."

Phillip grunted. "Oh, fine. Maybe revenge isn't far from my mind, but who can blame me?"

"Not me," said Draco. Hermione shot him another stern look.

"No one blames you, Phillip, but you said it yourself. This is a complicated situation. If no feelings are there why complicate it more?"

Phillip looked down to the ground and took several deep breaths. Then, eyes flared, he looked back at Hermione and said, "And all this is coming from a girl who's shagging the guy her pseudo-boyfriend hates. Now _that's_ rich."

Hermione gasped. She was completely taken aback, and could not hide the tears flooding her eyes as she turned to walk away.

Phillip immediately regretted what he'd said. "Hermione, wait. I didn't mean that."

"I'm going to check on Sophie," she called back to him, unsuccessfully hiding her sobs.

Upstairs, Hermione knocked on Sophie's door, who proceeded to yell at whoever was on the other side to go away. Hermione opened the door anyway.

"Oh, eet's you," sobbed Sophie. Then, taking a good look at Hermione, she asked, "Why are you crying?"

Hermione wiped her tears away and, with a smile, said, "It's nothing. How are you doing?"

"I 'ave been better," she said, falling back on her bed. Hermione walked over and climbed on next to her. "I do not mean to boss 'im around. I know 'e 'ates eet, but I 'ave seen Phillipe at 'is worst. I do not want 'im to go back to zat dark place, and zat Annaleigh ees trouble. Zis weell not end well."

"I know you're just looking out for him, but I think you have to let Phillip make his own mistakes. Unfortunately, he's a man, and they don't always think with their heads. Well, their _proper_ heads, anyway."

Sophie chuckled. "You can say zat again." She paused, looked at Hermione and smiled. "Speaking of ze ozer zing men zink wiz, 'ow was eet?"

Hermione blushed. "Uh, well … it was good." _Very_ good.

"Do not be shy, 'Ermione. I want all of ze juicy details," she said, rolling back to a sitting position.

"Uhh …"

Sophie rolled her eyes. "Okay, we weell start small. Where deed eet 'appen?"

"On the vineyard," Hermione answered confidently. "And then back here. _Twice_. Well, one and a half times, really. You see, you two came home and -"

"Een ze meeddle of ze dirt!" said Sophie, her face cringing. "I am not sure eef eet ees romantic or deesgusting. Per'aps a leettle of boz." She winked. "Tell me you at least took a shower."

"Uh, yeah, perhaps I should have clarified what 'back here' meant."

"SOPHIE! Someone is waiting for you!" echoed Draco's voice from downstairs.

"_Ugh_. I am soo not een ze mood now." Another knock came at the door. Sophie grunted. "Come een!"

They both turned, expecting to see Daniel, but were surprised to find Phillip instead.

"Hermione, do you mind if I talk to Sophie for a sec."

Hermione got up to leave but Sophie pulled her back down. "Whatever you 'ave to say to me you can say een front of 'er."

"Okay, fine," said Phillip, coming over and taking a seat on the bed. Hermione sat between the two, her eyes darting back and forth awkwardly. "I'm sorry I snapped at you downstairs. Both of you," he said, glancing at Hermione. Then, looking back at Sophie, he added, "But you need to stop bossing me around."

Sophie scowled. "Zat ees absurd. I do no such zing. Take eet back."

"You see! You just did it again!"

"I deed not! Tell 'im, 'Ermione!"

"Uhh ..."

"And now you're bossing _her_ around!"

"I am not!"

"Yes you are! For some reason you have this need to control everyone's lives around you and it needs to stop!" Hermione bit her lip. She was glad Phillip hadn't noticed that exact same trait in her yet.

"I am not trying to control you! I am just trying to prevent you from getting 'urt again! I was ze one 'o was zere for you before! I am ze one 'o knows what zat beetch really deed to you!"

"I feel really uncomfortable. Would you mind if I left?" asked Hermione, trying to climb off the bed. Both Sophie and Phillip grabbed an arm and pulled her back down.

"Yes, and I appreciate that, but what makes you think I'm going to go back to that place? _I am over Chastity_."

"Eef zat were true zen you would not be sleeping wiz 'er couseen!"

"Uhhumm!" They all turned to see Draco leaning against the doorframe. "I feel the need to let you all know we can hear everything you're saying downstairs. I suggest the two of you stop tearing at each other's throats and go tend to your guests."

Sophie stared blankly at Draco for a moment before moving her eyes over to Hermione. After a few quick glances back and forth she smiled and said, "Aww! Ze two of you match! 'Ow adorable!"

Hermione and Draco exchanged an awkward look that ended with both of them chuckling. Apparently, Draco's wardrobe choice hadn't been intentional.

Letting out a large breath of air, Phillip climbed off the bed and headed out the door with Sophie at his heels. Hermione and Draco waited a second before following.

Downstairs Phillip walked right up to an impatient Annaleigh and said, "Anna, I think you should leave."

"What? Why?" she asked, like rejection was a completely foreign concept to her. Even though they all knew Charlie inadvertently rejected her every day.

"Look, I'm not gonna lie. The other night was fun, but it was a mistake. We should never have done it."

"B-but Chastity and I aren't even that close and -"

"You were close enough to be a bridesmaid at our wedding. And my guess is you're probably one in her upcoming wedding too."

Annaleigh frowned. "Only because Chastity has no real girlfriends. You should know better than anyone how codependent she is on her significant others."

"I do," he agreed, "but, either way, this isn't going to work. I'm sorry."

Annaleigh stared at Phillip dumbstruck for a moment, before moving her eyes to Sophie, who was doing a horrible job at hiding her joy.

"Don't tell me this is because of her," she said accusingly.

"Not in the way you are indicating," answered Phillip. "Sophie is a great friend of mine and if she's not comfortable with you here, I'm not comfortable with you here."

Annaleigh clenched her fists, turning red in the face. She glared at Sophie for a minute, but eventually gave up and stormed to the door. "Are you coming, Daniel?" she asked sternly over her shoulder.

The handsome wizard looked at Sophie and grunted. "Why do I have to leave? I just got here."

"You don't expect me to fly all the way back to Romania by myself, do you? Imagine what our boss would say if I told him about your little side trip for this French trollop!" she yelled while glowering at Sophie.

Sophie was glowering right back at her. "I would razer be a trollop zan whatever you are."

Annaleigh huffed, opened the door and said, "I'll be waiting outside, Daniel. I suggest you hurry along." And with that she slammed the door.

Daniel looked at Sophie, completely torn. But, in the end, he chose his job over what could have been a raging night of fun with a beautiful French girl.

As soon as they were gone, Sophie grunted towards the kitchen and yelled, "Where ees ze ice-cream!"

Phillip followed her, but Draco grabbed Hermione by the hand and pulled her back into their bedroom. The moment the door was closed he tore her robe off of her and threw her onto the bed.

"Now, where were we?" he said, climbing on top of her with a grin. She grinned back at him and pulled his head down to hers, kissing him passionately.

It didn't take them long to catch back up. But what neither of them knew was that Sophie and Phillip were sitting right outside with their newly acquired pint of ice-cream.

"Can you believe the two of them are in there shagging while you and I are stuck out here _alone_, with nothing but junk food to ease our pain?" said Phillip, digging his spoon deep into the carton. He leaned back against the wall once he had his bite and licked at it slowly.

"Ze worst part of eet ees, eef Anna 'ad just stayed een Romania and minded 'er own buseeness, we could boz be getting some action right now. Me wiz Daniel, and you wiz one of zose Muggle girls, maybe even boz," said Sophie, winking. She was sitting on the foot of the stairs, and digging her spoon even deeper into the carton than Phillip had. "Zis sucks," she added, stuffing her large bite into her mouth.

Staring mindlessly for a minute, Phillip heard a strange cawing noise come from the bedroom. "Merlin's beard, is that Hermione?"

Sophie stopped and listened. "No. Zat ees Draco. She must 'ave neebbled just below ze ear. 'E likes zat."

"And both of you still wanted to shag him after hearing that?" laughed Phillip. "I guess you really _were_ desperate."

"Shut your mouz!" squealed Sophie, playfully batting her spoon at him. He grabbed it from her and mockingly held it jut out of her reach. "'Ey! Zat ees not fair!"

The two of them stood up and played keep away. Even though Sophie could not get her spoon back, she still kept a firm grip on the ice-cream. In the end, Phillip stood on one side of the hallway holding both spoons up like twin sai, while Sophie stood on the other, cupping the ice-cream in the nook of her armpit.

"It seems we've reached a stalemate, Deputy Labelle."

Sophie raised her eyebrows. "'Ave we now, Outlaw Prior? Because ze way I see eet, zere are more spoons een ze keetchen, but only one pint of ice-cream."

"Hmm, you're right," he said, sounding beaten. Then, grinning widely, he added, "Too bad the only way into the kitchen is to get past me."

Sophie looked at him, then past him to the kitchen. Plotting her course of action, she geared up by bouncing from one foot to the other. She dodged left, then immediately twirled back to the right, slipping right by Phillip. On her way out of the room he grabbed her by the waist and swung her back to her side of the hallway. She squealed.

"Did you hear something, Malfoy?"

They both froze. A rustling came from inside Draco and Hermione's room. Deathly gripping the spoons and ice-cream, the two of them darted up the stairs, making it out of sight just as Draco popped his head into the hallway.

"Nothing's out here," he called back to Hermione.

Sophie and Phillip laughed as they stumbled into the master bedroom, both of them collapsing on Sophie's bed. As soon as they got past the point of painful, tear-inducing laughter, Phillip handed Sophie her spoon back and the two of them proceeded to eat their ice-cream, both of them still chuckling after every bite.

XXX

Hermione woke up in the middle of the night, suddenly very aware of Draco's naked body spooning against her. She turned carefully – so as not to wake him – and stared at the peaceful face of the boy she had spent so many years hating. Hermione knew their time together now could never erase the past, but sometimes when she was with him she completely forgot about the wizard he used to be. It was almost like he was two separate people.

Giving him a kiss on the forehead, Hermione climbed out of bed and searched around for her robe. After she found it in a heap on the floor she put it on, and took a good look around the room. She and Draco had really made a mess of things. Clothes were thrown all about, the comforter – a great burden they kept getting tangled in – was torn and tossed on the ground, and several of the pillows were now sprouting feathers through several puncture wounds created by fingernails _and_ teeth.

Part of her felt ashamed she had disrespected someone else's property like this, but the other part of her – the bigger part – felt a little proud. It had been a long time since she'd had such a fun night. While she loved Ron, she was not going to lie and say the two of them weren't lacking passion, especially lately.

Hermione sighed. She couldn't believe she hadn't thought about Ron all day. How would he feel if he knew what she had done? Or, worse, how would _she_ feel if he was doing the exact same thing with someone she hated? Who was the female equivalent of Draco Malfoy? She gasped. _Pansy Parkinson_. If Ron touched Pansy Parkinson she would rip him a new one!

Hermione looked at Draco's sleeping form and frowned. _Bloody double standards_. Ron would never forgive her if he found out. Hell, even she didn't forgive herself. Yet, somehow, she couldn't stop. Even now she was anticipating waking up in the morning and being with him again. Part of her even wanted to wake him up right now, but she refrained. She had to maintain some power over him.

While staring at Draco, Hermione suddenly remembered the letter she still had hidden in her backpack. She tiptoed over to her bag and quietly searched its contents until she found the letter stuffed all the way down at the bottom. She then proceeded to tiptoe out of the room, closing the door silently behind her.

Hermione went outside with the letter and sat on a small bench in the courtyard. She stared at it for a while, unsure if she wanted to invade Draco's privacy more than she already had. Especially now.

Still, she had to know. What if his father had died? How would he find out? An owl from Mr. Ollivander addressed to him hardly seemed like the right way to learn such horrible news. Really, she would be doing him a favor by reading it.

Having justified her actions, as well asconvinced herself she was doing the right thing, Hermione tore open the seal and opened the letter:

_Dearest Draco,_

_ I see you have decided not to answer my letters. Very well. I know when I have lost, but that is not going to stop me from writing to you, even though, I am sure, you simply toss them out as soon as you receive them. Sounds like something your father would do. Neither of you were ever any good with confrontation._

_ Your father's condition remains stable, so at least we have that. I am still hoping you will get back here to see him before he takes a turn for the worse. He asks about you every day. I have started having that house-elf of ours relay messages from his visits to you for him. Luckily, I always filter them first. The creature seems to think you are getting rather close with a Mudblood, but I know it must be mistaken. You would never make such an error in judgment, and I do not have to tell you what would happen if –_

"What are you doing out here?"

Hermione shot up, absolutely affright. The letter fell from her hands and landed on the ground, the Malfoy family seal aimed upwards for all to see. Draco stared down at it with wide eyes that significantly narrowed when he brought them back up to her.

"Where did you get that?" he asked accusingly. Hermione was speechless. She tried to answer, but all that came out was incoherent mumbles. Draco glared at her and pointed to the letter. "Where the _bloody hell_ did you get that, Granger?"

"I-I took it," she finally answered, her bottom lip quivering. "From the garbage in the tent. I just thought you should know how your father was –"

"My father? What do _you_ know about my father?" he asked, eyes still blazing. When Hermione didn't answer he turned away aggravated, and pulled at his hair. "You _fucking_ read my other bloody letter, didn't you?" She still didn't answer. He shot back around and stormed into her face. "DIDN'T YOU?"

Hermione's eyes were flooded with tears. Unable to speak, she looked into his stone-gray eyes – completely devoid of the warmth they'd given her just a few hours earlier - and nodded.

Draco's nostrils flared. He stared at her was such disdain before picking up the letter and storming inside.

"Draco, wait," she said, running after him. "I'm sorry I took your letters without asking, but you should have told me about your father."

"Why?" he asked, arriving in their room. "It's none of your _bloody_ business."

Hermione stopped in the doorway and scowled at him. "Just like how my relationship with Ron was none of _your_ business, but you still pushed me to tell you." She was getting really sick of these double standards. They never seemed to work in her favor.

"At least I didn't go behind your back to find out," he said, throwing everything of his he could find into his backpack. "I _never_ would have stolen your letters from Weasel, even if I actually _was_ interested in what they said."

"You're right,' she admitted. "Taking the letters was wrong. But I wouldn't have done it if you'd just told me what was going on. You never write home, you never read your letters from home, you never talk about home. Why don't you want to see your father, who very well might be on his deathbed?"

"I repeat. _It is none of your business_, Granger! You are just a bloody shag! Something fun to do over the summer! You don't mean _anything_ to me, so why should I have to tell you _anything_?"

Hermione's heart sank. Her mouth went dry as all the fluid she had within her poured down her cheeks. Draco pushed by her, carrying all of his things with him as he headed to one of the empty bedrooms upstairs.

She tried to call after him but, once again, she'd lost her words. Finally giving in, Hermione closed the door, climbed into the empty bed and lied down, staring mindlessly at the ceiling.

She didn't know why his words had hurt her so much. It was true. They'd agreed anything between them would only be a fling but, somewhere along the way, Hermione had started to see it as more than that. She had started to see him as a friend, someone she could confide in. But, it appeared, the feelings were one-sided. Draco didn't see her as a friend. He'd kept his mind exactly where he said he would. Hermione was his summer fun. Nothing more.

Tears still flowing, Hermione closed her eyes and tried to sleep, but it would not come. Her heart hurt too much. She'd only just found out how good of a friend Draco Malfoy could be, and how great he could make her feel just by being near her. She wasn't sure if she was ready to give that up. In the end exhaustion overtook her, but even her dreams would not let her forget the blonde wizard.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Yeah … I'm running out of things to say … enjoy! :-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling**

The next morning Hermione did not want to leave her room. But when she heard the others all fluttering around she knew she had no choice. Mr. Ollivander could be giving them their next mission at any moment.

In the kitchen, Sophie was making breakfast while Phillip spoiled his appetite with some chocolate frogs. Draco was nowhere to be found, but she knew she had heard him come down the stairs.

"Where's Malfoy?" she asked, taking a seat at the table next to Phillip.

"'E went for a fly around ze property," said Sophie, keeping her eyes fixed on the skillet in front of her.

"Merlin's beard, Hermione. You look bloody awful."

"Phillipe!" snapped Sophie, giving him a stern look.

"What?" he asked. "Hermione's not stupid. I'm sure she's already well aware we heard them fighting last night."

"Eet ees not about zat, you eediot. Eet ees about manners. Try and get some, weell you?" Sophie walked over and put a cup of coffee in front of Hermione. "But, 'Ermione, eef you want to talk about eet, know zat we are 'ere for you," she said, motioning to her and Phillip.

"That's just her polite way of saying we're _dying_ to know what happened."

Hermione stared blankly into her cup of coffee. Her eyes were red and swollen but at least they had run dry. There would be no chance of tears showing in front of Sophie and Phillip. At least she had that.

"If you two heard us yelling then you must already know what happened. It's not exactly complicated."

Phillip and Sophie exchanged a look. "Well, we 'eard yelling, but we could not make out ze words."

Hermione sighed. "I don't really feel like talking about it right now."

She looked out the window just as Draco was landing his broom in the courtyard. Their eyes locked for a second before he turned away and walked off somewhere.

Without touching her cup of coffee, Hermione got up and said, "I'm going to lie down for a little bit longer. Come and get me when Mr. Ollivander's instructions arrive."

Hermione tried to sleep for a while, but when she kept stirring she decided to take a cold shower, in hopes of cooling her still-burning eyes. It didn't work.

When she got out she used her wand to repair the torn sheets and pillows, and, apparently, the tank-top and skirt Sophie had leant her the day before. She didn't remember how it had happened, only that the items were on one second and off the next.

Mr. Ollivander's owl finally arrived around noon. He wanted them to get both Brazilian and Indonesian Rosewood. It was considered an endangered species and he wanted a good amount of each before it was gone forever. While Hermione felt morally wrong taking wood from an endangered species, she did not object.

Draco took the lead as they flew to Indonesia first, each on their own brooms. He was very impatient with Hermione as she struggled to keep up, but Sophie stayed back with her.

"Eef you want, we can boz fly on my broom," she said.

Hermione shook her head. "No. I need to learn."

By the time they got to Indonesia it was pretty late, so they decided to make camp. For the first time since the start of their journey, everyone slept in their designated tents – other than the time in the mountains when their pairings forced proper sleeping arrangements on them.

It took them two days to find the Rosewood in Brazil. After that there was only two more days until they would separate. It was late by the time they found the wood, so they located a wizarding pub to drink in before heading off for their final mission as a foursome in the morning.

Draco still wasn't talking to Hermione. At least not pleasantly. He had only said a handful of words to her within the last few days, and whenever he did they were always harsh and critical. But, for the most part, Draco ignored her. It wasn't until they were all sitting together at the pub that things really got ugly.

Sophie was telling them all about her family. She was currently explaining how important her father's job was, and how he literally changed lives every day when Hermione asked, "What exactly does your father do?"

Draco immediately scoffed.

Hermione looked at him. "Is something wrong, Malfoy?"

"Oh, it's nothing, Granger," he said. "I just find it funny how you have this constant need to stick your nose into other people's family matters. What her father does is none of your business."

"Really, Draco, I do not mind," said Sophie, trying to ease the tension. "My fazer works at ze French ministry as a –"

"For your information, I do not just stick my nose into other people's family matters for my own benefit. If I ever did something like that it would only be because I was concerned for someone I care about."

When Draco took a long, hard sip of his drink Sophie thought it was safe to go on, but just when she opened her mouth to speak again he beat her to it. "Well, maybe you should stop being so _caring_ all the time. Especially when it's not wanted," he said, slamming his empty mug on the table.

"So, my fazer –"

"Not _wanted_. I wasn't the one who started this whole _caring_ thing. You're the one who apologized to me. Remember?"

"So we've gotten past the whole 'hypothetical' thing now and are referring to actual events?" asked Phillip, trying to lighten the mood. Sophie shook her head at him. Draco and Hermione didn't even notice.

"I apologized. I admit it. But it was nothing more."

"So you're going to deny there was ever any sort of friendship between us? You really don't care about me at all?"

Draco looked Hermione straight in her chocolate-brown eyes, gave an impish smile and said, "I wanted to shag you. That's all. Just one more thing for me to rub in Weasel's and Potty's faces. Other than the obvious."

All three of the other's jaws dropped to the floor, but none farther than Hermione's. Tears poured down her cheeks as she jumped up from the table and ran outside. Sophie and Phillip sat there dumbfounded, unsure if they should go after her or not.

Draco frowned down at his empty mug. "I need another drink," he said, standing up and walking to the bar. Within seconds he was chatting it up with some pretty witch at one of the tables.

The other two were absolutely disgusted with him. They gave it about ten minutes before Sophie went outside looking for Hermione. She found her sitting in an alley beside the pub, hugging her knees to her chest.

"'Ermione, what are you doing? People ureenate een ze kinds of places."

"Oh, I don't care," said Hermione, sinking her head deeper into her knees.

Grunting, Sophie used her wand to clean the ground beside her and sat down. "Are you going to tell me what 'appened between you two now? Because, clearly, somezing 'as sheefted. Eet ees like 'e ees a deefferent person."

Hermione shook her head. "No. This is who he always was. I thought, maybe, he had changed, but I was wrong. He's still the same arrogant, selfish, hotheaded, cruel pureblood he always was." Hermione took a deep breath and said, "And no, I'm not going to tell you. Just know that it is my fault. I did something stupid and I'm suffering the consequences."

"I do not care what you deed. You do not deserve to be treated zat way. 'E _needs_ to apologize."

"He's not going to, Sophie. He's never going to forgive me." She sobbed. Sophie put a comforting arm around her. "I suppose it's better this way. Now I won't be so attached when the summer ends. I had a summer fling and I still love Ron. That's all I really wanted."

"I am not sure eef you are trying to conveence me or yourself, but eizer way you are doing a 'orrible job of eet."

Hermione chuckled. "I know."

The two of them sat in the dirty alleyway for nearly an hour before going back inside. Sophie used her wand to fix Hermione's face up a bit, but no amount of magic could hide the sadness in her eyes.

When they got back inside, Phillip spotted them immediately. He hadn't moved from his spot at their table and had been keeping a close eye on Draco. The wizard was just asking for trouble.

"Feeling better?" Phillip asked Hermione as she took her seat next to him.

"Yes, much," she lied. "Thank you."

"What ees 'e doing?" asked Sophie, her eyes wide as she stared at Draco nuzzling in the neck of a brunette witch, eyeing Hermione as he did so.

Phillip shook his head. "Don't ask me. He was on some other witch earlier, but then some boyfriend-type showed up and tried to pick a fight with him. Luckily, he was sober enough to know to back off. But he's had about three drinks since then. Hopefully he doesn't do anything stupid." Sophie shot him a look. "Sorry. _Stupider_," he corrected.

Sometime later, Sophie got up and went to the bar to get them all drinks. Their waitress had become ridiculously slow once Draco moved on to her. While she was gone, Phillip scooted closer to Hermione and put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"You know he's an absolute idiot, right? Don't let someone like Draco get you down. You're better than that. You're better than him."

Phillip moved his hand over to her other shoulder, giving her a half-hug. Draco was off of his waitress and on him in a second. "Get your _bloody_ hands off of her!" he shouted, pushing Phillip out of his seat.

Hermione was stunned. "What the hell, Malfoy?" she shouted, standing up and holding a hand out to help Phillip to his feet. "Phillip, I'm so sorry."

"I'm not," said Phillip, letting go of her hand and punching Draco square in the jaw. "Been dying to do that since the day I met you, _mate_."

"What ees going on?" asked Sophie, running back over just as Draco took a swing at Phillip.

Before Phillip could retaliate, Hermione pulled out her wand and yelled, "_Immobulus_!" freezing both wizards mid-punch.

"I swear, I am gone for two seconds," said Sophie, crossing her arms. "What ees wrong wiz you two?"

With both of them incapable of answering, Hermione looked at her and said, "Draco came over and pushed Phillip, who responded by punching him."

Sophie shook her head. "Zat ees reediculous. Ze two of you are pureblood weezards. Zrowing punches ees not 'ow we settle zings een our world. Eef you want to fight do eet properly and 'ave a duel."

"Sophie!" barked Hermione. "That is _hardly _constructive advice. The two of them should not be fighting at all."

Both boys started grunting. Hermione rolled her eyes before removing her freezing charm.

Straightening his shirt, Draco said, "You're right, Granger. This shouldn't be settled in a duel. We should settle this more fittingly." The wizards looked at each other and nodded, both knowing what they had to do.

The two of them walked outside, Hermione and Sophie – and a few other curious bar patrons – at their heels.

Once they were in the fresh air, Draco and Phillip both took out their wands and said, "_Accio Broom_." Within seconds both of their brooms were out of their rooms and in their hands.

"A race it is," said one of the random onlookers.

"So what are the rules?" asked Phillip to no one in particular.

"You aren't honestly going to race those things, are you?" asked Hermione. Neither boy answered. "This is bollocks. There is no reason the two of you should even be fighting. You've been getting along fine recently."

"Only because of you," said Phillip. "If you hadn't been so convinced he was alright I never would've accepted him."

"But I still think he's alright," said Hermione, honestly. "It's not what you think, Phillip. His behavior towards me is my fault. I'm the one who –"

"He shagged you, and then dumped you! Stop making excuses for him! He's not worth it!"

"Now, Phillipe, zat ees not fair. Draco 'as proven 'imself to be a valuable asset to zis team and –"

"Oh, will both of you just crawl out of his arse already?" Both girls gasped. "Draco is worthless and I'm going to prove it."

Draco kept a solemn face, but Hermione was not blind to the way his eyes sunk when Phillip called him worthless. Even someone as stone-hard as Draco felt a little hurt sometimes.

"So what are the rules?" Draco asked the audience, all the while keeping his eyes fixated on Phillip.

A wizard tourist took out a map of the area and handed it to one of the locals. They drew a circle and said, "This is the barrier around our town. Stay inside it to avoid any Muggle sightings."

"They should do five laps around!" shouted someone else.

The wizard with the map nodded. "Five laps around. Anything goes. First one back here wins."

"Tell me you're not going through with this," said Hermione, looking at Phillip. When he said nothing, she turned to Draco. She was only met with more silence. "Sophie, do something," she pleaded.

Sophie frowned. "Oh, just let zem go, 'Ermione. Eet weell be good for zem to get zis out of zeir systems. I am seeck of ze tension between ze two of zem. Maybe when eet ees over we can all finally just relax."

Hermione let out a frustrated squeal before storming back inside, Draco and Phillip just mounting their brooms as she slammed the door.

She watched the two of them race from her window, gasping and covering her eyes every time one of them knocked the other to pull ahead, both almost falling off their brooms on numerous occasions.

In the end Phillip won by a hair. While he celebrated his victory Draco took off somewhere. Hermione watched until the last person went back inside, then she apparated outside and went looking for Draco.

She found him several minutes later, sitting on a rock in the middle of some trees. When she walked into the clearing he didn't look up but, somehow, he already knew it was her.

"What do you want, Granger?" he asked, sounding absolutely defeated.

"To talk," she said, casually taking a seat beside him.

"I'm not exactly in the _mood_," he said, scooting away from her.

"Well, I'm not really giving you much of a choice, Malfoy. Don't worry. I'm not going to ask you about your father. Just tell me what happened tonight. Why did you attack Phillip? I thought the two of you were getting on alright."

"Only because of you," he said. "We called a truce in France when we went to get brooms. We figured we only had a week left together so we might as well keep it pleasant."

"Looks like that turned out _really _well," she said, looking at the bruise already forming below his mouth. "That looks bad. Here, let me …" she pulled out her wand, waved it at his mark and said, "_Episkey_." The wound started to vanish immediately.

"Thanks,' he said, rubbing the spot where the bruise had been. "He may be an idiot, but Phil has an amazing right hook."

"Well, he is twice your size. That might have something to do with it."

Draco chuckled halfheartedly. "Yeah. I guess I should have known better than to push a rock. Though, he sure did topple over easily."

"Only because he wasn't expecting it," she laughed. "Now, are you going to tell me why you did it? Or do I have to _beat it_ out of you?" She winked.

Draco glanced sideways at her before leaning down on his knees and staring at the ground. "I'm mad at you, Hermione, but that doesn't mean I want him touching you." A wide grin spread across Hermione's lips. She sat there staring at him like that for a whole minute before he looked up and met her eyes. "What?"

"Nothing," she said, still smiling. "I've just never heard you say my name before. Other than that one night after our first mission, and even then it sounded forced. It's kind of nice to hear it come out just casually."

Draco didn't understand. "I've only said your name once before? I'm sure I've said it more than that."

"No," she said, shaking her head. "You only ever call me Granger. Or Mudblood. But I'd prefer not to remember those days."

"Huh," he said, thinking about this. "I never realized. But you don't ever call me by my name either. Maybe once or twice."

"Should I start?" she asked.

"I suppose that would be alright. _Hermione_," he added, smiling.

Hermione smiled back, "Sounds good, _Draco_."

The two of them stayed there, looking at each other in silence. It was a nice moment, and Hermione could not help but reach out and hold his hand. He gave hers a squeeze. "I'm sorry I've been such a git. Like my mother says, I don't handle confrontation well."

"So you read it then?" she asked.

He nodded. "Yeah. Did you read the entire thing?"

She shook her head. "No. I only got to the part about your _apparent_ fraternizing with a Mudblood being a mistake."

"Good," he said, letting out a sigh of relief. "It's probably best you didn't see the rest. As you already know, the Malfoy's can be a bit old fashioned."

"You don't say," she laughed, nudging him.

He smiled. "I'm not going to tell you about my father. Not yet, anyway."

"That's fine," she said. "I truly am sorry I took your letters. I was just worried about you. Is that alright?"

Draco raised an eyebrow at her. "Is it alright that you were worried about me?" he asked. She nodded. "It's fine, Grang – I mean, Hermione. You're allowed to care about whoever you want."

"Even someone who's just a summer _shag_?" she asked.

Draco went stiff. "I was angry. You …" He sighed, releasing his tense body, squeezing her hand even tighter than he already was. "You know that's not true. I care about you too. Merlin _knows_ why."

"Yes, it is a bit unexpected," she said, looking off to the side. "But I don't think it's a bad thing. A lot has changed over the years. You're not quite the _git_ you were before. Though, you're not exactly good either. Maybe your words aren't as cruel, but you're still as sarcastic and rude as ever."

Draco laughed. "But that's what makes me special, Hermione. Potter already claimed the title of Saint. The wizarding world needs a loveable Devil. That's where I come in."

"And where does that put me?" she asked, chuckling.

"Hmm … Well, before this summer you were definitely one of Potter's angels. But, now, you've dabbled in the Underworld. What's between a saint and a devil?"

"A witch," she answered.

Draco shook his head. "No. That's boring. How about a sprite? That way you still get wings, like an angel, but are a bit more down to earth."

Hermione smiled. "Alright. Sprite it is."

The two of them stayed outside for a little while longer, talking about nothing of any real importance. Sometimes when someone had something horrible on their mind, all they needed was to forget about it for a little while.

"Draco … I just want you to know … You're not worthless," she said, putting her other hand on top of their clasped ones.

Draco smiled, nudging her chin with his free hand. "Thanks Hermione. I needed to hear that."

Eventually the two of them headed back to the pub, Hermione leading Draco by the hand over to Phillip so he could apologize. He did - though not easily - and Phillip accepted, ordering them all more drinks. Hermione noticed the mark on his face was already healed too. Sophie took credit for that. Why men never thought about healing their own cuts and bruises was beyond them.

"So 'ave ze two of you made up?" asked Sophie hopefully. "Because Phillipe and I are really seeck of your fighting."

Hermione and Draco looked at each other. "We're fine," said Hermione. "But I think we're going to cool off for a bit."

"That's smart," said Phillip, taking a sip of his drink. Draco narrowed his eyes at him, but kept his mouth shut. For now, anyway.

"But angry sex ees 'ot!" shouted Sophie. "Eef you do not act now you are going to meess eet!"

Draco's eyes went wide as he seriously thought about this.

Hermione, not even noticing the wheels turning in Draco's head, killed the moment by saying, "But I was never angry."

Draco grunted. It was no fun if she wasn't even going to play along.

Not long after that the four of them went upstairs to bed. All of them heading to their own separate rooms. Hermione had been lying down, without sleep, for about an hour when she heard a '_Pop_!' She looked up to see Draco standing at the foot of her bed.

"Sorry to wake you, Hermione. I'm having some trouble sleeping. Would you mind if I slept in here?"

Hermione smiled softly before opening her covers and motioning for him to come on in. She didn't have to tell him twice. Within seconds Draco was snuggled in her bed, his arms wrapped tightly around her shoulders, while hers were hugged around his waist. Within no time at all, the two of them were fast asleep.

XXX

The next morning the four of them got an early start to collect their final wood together as a group. Before apparating to his own room, Draco gave Hermione a sweet kiss on the cheek. After he was gone Hermione put her hand on the place his lips had touched and smiled.

For their final mission they were going to the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona to collect two different kinds of petrified wood. Once again, the taking of the wood was highly illegal, and Hermione's conscience was starting to get the better of her.

"Calm down, Hermione. It's only illegal for Muggles," said Phillip, trying to be reassuring.

"And eet ees not like we are taking ze wood as a souvenir or anyzing. Mr. Olleevander 'as real purpose for eet. Eef anyone should 'ave eet before eet ees gone forever eet ees 'im."

Hermione didn't like it, but she agreed.

The sun was already setting by the time they located both types of woods. Right on cue, Mr. Ollivander's owl swooped in and took the two petrified woods from them. After that they flew to what appeared to be an abandoned Pancake House just off of Historic Route 66. But if you knock on the door in just the right pattern it opens up to reveal a popular wizard nightclub. Of course, Sophie had the inside scoop they needed to get in.

"How did you even know about this place, Sophie?" asked Hermione, as they approached the door. They had just finished setting up camp behind the building and changing into proper clubbing attire.

Sophie looked at her and smiled. "Ze day Phillipe and I went to L.A. I met zis weezard 'o told me about eet. 'E's supposed to be 'ere tonight, so do not rueen my game."

"Isn't that when you are I were still hooking up?" asked Draco, offended.

Sophie gave him a crooked grin before knocking on the door in a very complex pattern. The moment she was done the door opened and smoke seeped out into the night air. They all stepped into a room filled with witches and wizards dancing on a floor, avoiding real lasers shooting at them from the ceiling as part of the light show. Whenever they would hit someone that person would giggle, like they were being tickled, before returning to normal and dancing on.

"Sophie, you made it!" shouted a handsome blonde wizard approaching them. Even in this bad lighting Hermione could not help but notice his striking blue eyes.

"He and Sophie would have absolutely _gorgeous_ children," she whispered to Phillip. But, in a place like this whispering was more like shouting slightly less loudly. Phillip did not respond. He just stared at this new wizard with blatant disapproval.

"'Ermione, Draco, Phillipe. I would like you all to meet Patreeck."

"Patrick," he said, shaking all of their hands. "It's so cute the way she says my name." He smiled over at Sophie who was quick to smile back at him. "Can I buy you all a drink?"

Sophie, Hermione, and Draco gladly accepted, but Phillip disappeared somewhere before he could answer. After they had their drinks, Hermione and Draco left Sophie and Patrick alone. She'd made it very clear she was itching to get some, and it looked like Patrick was going to be the lucky wizard to give it to her.

They found Phillip a little while later, grinding with some witch on the dance floor. They decided it was best to leave him alone too.

"Let's dance, Hermione," said Draco, dragging her to the dance floor, before she could get the chance to protest. Hermione spilled her drink along the way, taking the last little sip of it once Draco stopped pulling her. A waitress showed up immediately to take their glasses.

Draco put his arms around Hermione's waist and pulled her close while she took a good look around her. "Uh, Draco, I don't really know how to dance like this."

The only sort of dancing Hermione had ever done was ballroom, and maybe some jumping around at weddings, but this? Everyone here just seemed to be gyrating and humping on the dance floor. She almost felt like she was violating their privacy by watching.

"Neither do I, but it looks simple enough. We're both really good at shagging and we've done it vertically before. This is just like that, only with our clothes on."

Hermione laughed and smacked him in the chest. "You are really _quite_ the charmer."

When they first started dancing it was a bit awkward, but once Hermione stopped copying moves from other people and started feeling the music they got pretty good at it. At one point they forgot all about the dancing protocol in this place and began swinging each other around, Draco even going as far as to dip Hermione over his knee and kissing her passionately before pulling her back to her feet.

It wasn't much longer before Draco was slamming Hermione against the wall, using it as a threshold while he rubbed up against her. She kissed him back with such vigor and desire the two of them knew they couldn't stay here any longer. So much for cooling off.

They ran out of the club, so caught up in their own lust to even notice the familiar witch and wizard in the corner. At first they were fighting, but within seconds they were hardcore snogging.

Outside, Hermione and Draco went around to the back of the building where there tent was setup, along with many other wizard's tents.

As soon as they were inside, both took out their wands and sealed the entrance with a shield charm at the same time. Both of their wands fell out of their hands as Draco picked up Hermione and carried her over to the kitchen table. He threw her down on it, ripping off her shirt while she did the same to him.

Within a flash both of them were completely naked and going at it on their place of eating. It would need some serious cleaning, but that was something they would worry about later.

"Oh, Draco …"

It wasn't until that moment Draco realized how much he liked the sound of Hermione saying his name. Especially in this scenario.

He called out her name too as the two of them switched positions. And then again when they moved to the couch. And again when they fell on the floor. And another time when she pushed him onto the bed, straddling him just after impact. Really, no part of that tent went untouched that night. Draco decided right then and there that going four days without shagging Hermione was just not practical. If he got mad at her again he would just have to take Sophie's advice about this whole 'angry sex' thing.

When the two of them finally collapsed - both completely fulfilled – Hermione cuddled up next to Draco, putting her head on his chest, and went to sleep.

Draco started to go to sleep too, but, just before he reached dreamland, his mind brought him back. His eyes shot open as he remembered the stupid thing he had done during his rage. He looked down at Hermione's serene face and frowned. He wasn't ready to give her up just yet. He knew he'd have to at the end of the summer but, for now, he just wanted to be with her.

There had to be a way to fix his mistake. But he would worry about that tomorrow. For now he just wanted to fall asleep holding her.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: I know in the last chapter I ended their fight a little fast, but I decided to do that because I wanted them to be getting along for this next part :-)**

**And don't worry, there will be _plenty_ more fights to come. It is Hermione and Draco, after all!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The next morning Draco woke up Hermione with a kiss. He was already eager for more, and she was more than willing to oblige. In fact, she nearly ripped his hair out while screaming his name. He didn't mind one bit.

Afterwards the two of them lied there without a care in the world. It wasn't until they heard Sophie and Phillip knocking on their tent that they finally got up and got dressed. When they got outside their comrades were still standing there, smirking at them.

"Pretty strong shield charm. Must have been some night," said Phillip.

"Now, Phillipe, do not go jumping to conclusions. Maybe zey just wanted some privacy to talk. After all, zey wanted to 'cool off'. Zey are boz steell _so_ angry at one anozer." Sophie and Phillip burst out laughing.

Hermione wasn't amused. "Well, there's no reason to be _rude_ about it."

For breakfast the four of them went back to the pancake house, where Sophie did another complicated knock for the door to open. By day the building was, in fact, a pancake house. But only for wizards.

Sophie ordered a large stack of blueberry pancakes, which she smothered in her Purple Polly Flower sap. Draco was not blind to how she kept feeding Phillip bites, and how gladly he accepted them.

All Hermione noticed was how the wizard, Patrick, was glaring at them from a table across the restaurant. "So what happened with Patrick last night?" she asked Sophie.

Sophie stopped mid-bite and turned just in time to catch Patrick's evil eye. "Oh," she said, turning back around. "Yeah. Zat deed not 'appen."

"Aw, why not?" asked Hermione, still not noticing how focused Phillip became on his food. "I thought you wanted it to happen. And it certainly seemed like he was willing."

"Yeah … 'e was," she said, glancing sideways at Phillip. "I just was not feeling eet. Zat ees all."

"Bummer," said Hermione, taking a sip of her coffee. "Well, you'll find someone soon. I'm sure of it."

"So am I," said Draco with a wide grin, his eyes darting wildly from Sophie to Phillip. Both tried to avoid his stares but eventually he caught Sophie's eye. One look was all he needed to confirm his suspicions. He immediately started laughing.

"What's so funny?" asked a naïve Hermione.

"Oh, nothing," he said, patting her head dotingly.

She swatted his hand away. "What's with you?"

Before he could 'out' their comrades, Mr. Ollivander's owl swooped into the pancake house and dropped five letters on their table. Sophie screamed as a red one fell right between her and Hermione.

"It's another Howler," said Hermione, looking closely at it. "With both our names on it." Sophie threw her hands over her mouth and squealed. "Sophie, why does this Howler have _both_ our names on it?"

Phillip laughed and gave Sophie a nudge. "Come on, Soph. It's time you told Hermione what you did."

"Oh! I am so sorry, 'Ermione! But … last week, just after we found you and Draco keessing I went back to our tent and wrote a letter."

Hermione's heart slowed immensely. "A letter? To who?"

Sophie bit her lip and looked to Phillip for some help. He didn't give it to her. Taking a deep breath, Sophie looked back at Hermione and said, "To Fleur." And Hermione's heart officially stopped. "I am so sorry, 'Ermione. I cannot say zat enough. I even contacted Mr. Olleevander zrough the Floo and tried to stop eet, but eet was already deleevered."

Hermione grabbed onto the table to keep herself from toppling over. Draco tightened his grip on her shoulders. Gulping, Hermione stared down at the red envelope and said, "But Fleur is staying at The Burrow this summer, so Mrs. Weasley can help her with Victoire while she's pregnant and –"

"I know …"

"What if she opened it while she was in the room? What if Ron was there? Oh Merlin, what am I going to do?"

"Well, you can start by opening the letter," said Draco, reaching down and grabbing it. "You've spent so much time talking I'm surprised it hasn't blown already."

He opened it up and threw it on the table. Hermione closed her eyes as tightly as she could while the Howler rose into the air and began to … well, howl.

"SOPHIE ANNE LABELLE, I AM SURPRISED AT YOU!" Sophie gulped. "STEECKING YOUR NOSE EENTO OZER PEOPLE'S BUSEENESS EES VERY UNLADYLIKE! I AM AWARE OF RON AND 'ERMIONE'S ARRANGEMENT FOR ZE SUMMER AND NOZING YOU SAY WEELL MAKE ME ZINK ANY LESS OF 'ER. YOU ARE JUST LUCKY I GOT YOUR LETTER WHEN MRS. WEASLEY WAS OUT OF ZE ROOM. EEF SHE SAW EET BEING DELEEVERED BY ZAT MR. OLLEEVANDER'S OWL SHE WOULD 'AVE INSISTED ON READING EET. SOMETIMES ZE WOMAN CAN BE SO NOSY. MAYBE ZE TWO OF YOU ARE RELATED!

"AND AS FOR YOU, 'ERMIONE." Now Hermione gulped as the Howler turned towards her. "I FEEL ZE NEED TO REMIND YOU 'OW MUCH RON LOVES AND CARES FOR YOU. 'E 'AS ZOUGHT OF NOZING ELSE SEENCE ZE DAY YOU LEFT. JUST REMEMBER, ZERE EES NO ONE BETTER ZAN A WEASLEY. ZEY ARE ZE KINDEST, MOST LOVING AND LOYAL FAMEELY I 'AVE EVER 'AD ZE PREEVILEGE OF KNOWING. YOU WOULD BE WISE TO REMEMBER ZAT. NOW, BOZ OF YOU STOP ARGUING AND ENJOY YOUR SUMMER! LOVE FLEUR."

The letter burst into flames. Only Sophie was smart enough to move her food out of the way before ash came raining down on the table.

"Well, that wasn't so bad," said Phillip, wiping ashes off his omelet.

Hermione didn't hear him. She was too busy staring mindlessly at the place the Howler had once been. Ron wasn't following through with their break. He was only thinking of her. But there was still two months left in the summer. Maybe … there was a chance … No. She knew the truth. Ron wasn't going to do anything. Not unless he found out she was, and then it would just be out of spite. There had to be another way to ease her guilty conscience.

"WHAT?" They all looked at Sophie, who was reading their letter from Mr. Ollivander with her jaw on the floor. They all waited for her to say something more, but she never did.

"Are you going to tell us what it is, Soph?" asked Phillip, trying to catch a peek over her shoulder.

"Eet ees our new assignments. Zey are not what we zought," she said, handing the letter over to Hermione.

She took it and started to read aloud. "Effective immediately, you will be splitting into two groups. Sophie Labelle will be traveling with Draco Malfoy, and Hermione Granger will be traveling with Phillip Prior. Your assignments will be delivered to you in exactly one hour."

"Um, yeah, about that …" started Draco.

"Zis ees unbelievable. I am going to complain right now!"

Sophie jumped up from their table and darted for the back of the room, where the fireplace connected to the Floo network was located. Phillip ran after her. After pulling out some money and leaving it on the table, Hermione and Draco followed.

"Uh, Hermione. I should tell you something …"

"In a minute, Draco," she said entering the back room. Sophie was already sticking her head into the green flames and yelling at the person on the other side. Phillip stuck his head in next to her.

"I cannot work wiz Draco! Eet ees un'eard of! What 'appened to our oreeginal pairings?"

A pause. Phillip stuck his head out and said, "Certain circumstances have led him to believe these new pairings will be more affective." He stuck his head back in.

"What circumstances? I _refuse_ to work wiz 'im!"

Another pause. Phillip came out again. "He has switched it. Sophie and Hermione. And me and Draco."

"Oh," said Sophie sounding positively delighted. She took her head out of the fire, turned to Hermione and asked, "Does zat sound alright, 'Ermione?"

"Sophie!" shouted Phillip, sticking his head back in the flames. "I am sorry, Mr. Ollivander but I, also, cannot work with Draco. He is rude and arrogant, and we do not work well together. _At_ all."

"Thanks _a lot_ guys. Way to make me sound like a prick." Sophie and Hermione exchanged a look. Draco didn't catch it.

After winking at Hermione, Sophie put her head back in the flames to hear Mr. Ollivander's answer. She came back out slowly. Glancing sideways at Draco, she said, "'E says eef no one can work wiz Draco zen 'e weell 'ave to be replaced."

Hermione rolled her eyes before going over and sticking her bushy head into the flames. "Mr. Ollivander, I have no problem working with Draco. There's really no need to replace him."

"While that may be fine for you, Ms. Granger, I'm afraid Mr. Malfoy has requested not to be paired with you. Therefore, I can only assume –"

No one heard what he said. Hermione, Sophie, and Phillip had already taken their heads out of the flames and turned to look at Draco, who was nervously brushing a hand through his hair.

"You requested not to be paired with me?" asked Hermione, climbing to her feet. "Why? _When_?"

"I was trying to tell you," he said. "It was the morning after we fought. I used my broom to fly to the closest Floo network and requested not to be paired with you."

"Why didn't you just use Sophie's Floo?"

Draco shrugged. "I suppose I was trying to be sneaky about it."

"Well, it certainly was _sneaky_. And why did you wait until now to tell me?" She held her hand up. "Wait. You didn't tell me. I had to hear it from bloody Mr. Ollivander!"

"I was angry. And I did try to tell you."

"Trying to tell me one minute ago doesn't count!"

"Doesn't count? Of course it counts! You're the one who went and stuck your bloody head in there before I could say anything!"

"You _should_ have said something to me the day you did it!"

"But I was giving you the silent treatment! _Telling_ you would have devoid the purpose!"

"_Silent treatment_? Now that's rich! I don't remember anything _silent_ about those few days! All I remember is harsh words and criticism!"

"Well, the silent treatment was my plan! But then you kept bloody pissing me off!"

"You can't get mad at me, Malfoy! _I'm_ not the one who did something stupid!"

"Oh, so it's _Malfoy_ again? Well, that's bloody fine, _Granger_!"

Sophie and Phillip stuck their heads back in the green flames to drown out the noise. "Sorry Mr. Olleevander. Lover's quarrel." She smirked.

"Yes, that's what I was afraid of," he said.

"Zere's really nozing to fear. Zey fight a lot, but zey are a good team." She nudged Phillip.

"Uhh … Yeah. A _great_ team, Mr. Ollivander. As are Sophie and I. Your original plan really was the best."

"Alright, fine, Mr. Prior, Ms. Labelle. If you can get Mr. Malfoy in here to tell me he's fine with working with Ms. Granger, I will approve it."

Sophie and Phillip both took their heads out of the fire and turned around. "_Eww_," they said in unison as they caught sight of Hermione and Draco snogging against the wall.

"Oh, sorry guys," said Draco, turning to them and winking. Hermione blushed and shyly covered her mouth.

"Draco, Mr. Olleevander wants you to approve your working wiz 'Ermione."

Draco gave Hermione one more kiss before walking over to the fire and sticking his head in. "That's perfectly alright with me, Mr. Ollivander. Sorry for the confusion … Uhuh … Yes sir. I won't do it again … Yeah … Oh, _nooo_ … Haha, you're a riot, sir … Yes, yes. We'll be ready in an hour … Thank you, Mr. Ollivander. Goodbye." Draco took his head out of the flames, turned around, and smiled at the rest of them. "All settled. Shall we get packing then?"

They all headed back to their tents. Mr. Ollivander's owl was still swooping over their heads, so they each took the time to read their letters, even Draco. He still didn't write one, though.

Just before they had to leave, Hermione sat on the couch re-reading her letter from Ron for the fifth time. She'd written a response, but it really didn't do his words justice.

_Dear Hermione,_

_ I am an absolute git. Don't even try and make excuses for me. As smart as you are, nothing you come up with can justify the way I've acted. I've been so convinced the only reason you went away this summer was to put some distance between us before dumping me, but everyone says that's rubbish._

_ I get it. You wanted to find yourself. And, without you here, I've realized how much I needed to do that exact same thing. I've quit Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. I gave George my letter of resignation last week. In three days I start my training to become an Auror. As always, you've helped me do exactly what I needed._

_ You always know what's best for me. That's why I needed to write to you now and tell you how much I need you. I don't want to lose you because, really, I am nothing without you. It sounds cheesy, but it's true. I love you, Hermione. I know I don't say it enough. Every day I regret not saying it to you the day you left, but I really thought that was goodbye. And I wasn't ready to say goodbye yet._

_ When you get back the two of us are going to make it work. Take as long as you need to think about marriage. I'll wait for you. Because that's what you do for someone you love. You wait for them to be ready to take the next step, and then you take it together. We're a team. Always have been._

_ Now, stop wasting time reading my jargon, get off your arse, and go do whatever it is Mr. Ollivander has you doing. I'm sure it's not nearly as cool as the image I have of you wrestling dragons for their heartstrings in my head. You're probably just shaping wands or something. Either way, I'm sure you're great at it._

_ Anyways, I'm going to stop babbling now. I really do miss you._

_Love always (And to the Underworld and back),_

_Ron_

_P.S. I'm not going to lie and say I didn't have help with this letter. Ginny and Fleur insisted on proofreading. Even now they're chasing me around the room while I try to write this. Hopefully, I can attach it to that bloody owl before they -_

Hermione sighed. His letter was, without a doubt, perfect. Right down to the bloody P.S. For the first time since she'd known him, Ron finally said all of the right things – even if he did have some help. She couldn't feel like a worse person right now, especially when Draco came up behind her and started kissing her neck.

"Weasel have anything interesting to say, for once?" he asked.

"No," she said, stuffing the letter deep into her backpack.

As a new regular habit, Draco slid over the back of the couch, put his head in Hermione's lap and pulled her down for a kiss. Only, this time, it felt a little forced. Releasing her lips, Draco looked into Hermione's eyes and asked, "What now?" He was lucky her eyes were so expressive because that was how he knew he'd said the wrong thing. "Sorry. That didn't come out right. What I meant to ask was what's _wrong_?"

"Nothing," she answered, looking back towards her backpack.

"Well, that's a lie if I've ever heard one. Did Weasel say something?"

Yes, he did. Many things. And all good. "No, of course not. It's not always about Ron, you know," she said, pushing him off of her and jumping to her feet.

"Then enlighten me," he said, jumping up after her. "What _is_ it about?"

That's when Hermione realized the letter from Ron really wasn't the only thing bothering her. There _was_ something else. "It's about you," she said half-honestly. "We'd been in a fight for less than six hours when _you_ decided to punish me. How do I know the next time we fight you won't do something worse?"

"Who says we're going to fight again?"

"Look at our track record, Draco! It's bound to happen sooner or later. In fact, it's starting to happen right now!"

"I'm not the one who's fighting. That's all you."

Holding her mouth tightly shut, Hermione took several deep breaths through her nose. When she was calm she looked at him and said, "You're right. I'm sorry. Just … promise me you didn't do anything else stupid while you were mad at me. Sophie kind of put me on edge."

"Am I really that much of an embarrassment?" he asked, only mildly offended. He didn't want anyone he knew to learn about the two of them either. But, at the same time, he was a catch. Why should she care what Weasel knew?

"It's not that." It completely was. "But if Ron _does_ happen to find out about us, I think it should come from me. So promise." Hermione crossed her arms and waited for his answer.

Draco grabbed her by the waist, pulled her close, and gave her a cute smirk before leaning down and kissing her. He pulled away slowly, looked deep into her eyes, and said, "I promise, Hermione. I didn't do anything else, nor will I if - _when_," he corrected, "I get mad at you again."

Satisfied with his answer, Hermione threw her arms around his neck and gave him a kiss back. "Good." She smiled. "Now, shall we go?" she asked, picking up her backpack.

"You go ahead. I need to call Ruskle here for a moment. An update, you know."

Hermione nodded, not even questioning it before leaving the tent and casting an imperturbable charm on the entrance. She was definitely trying to make amends; Draco had to give her that.

As soon as she was gone Draco called for his house-elf. The moment he heard the '_Pop_!' he asked, "Did you get it?"

"Ruskle is sorry, Young Master. He was unable to get your letter back."

"_Ugh_. Are you kidding?" The elf shamefully shook his head. "But I gave you this task _two_ days ago."

"Ruskle is a disgrace to his Master. He must be punished immediately."

Before the elf could beat himself silly, Draco held his hand out and said, "No, Ruskle. That won't be necessary. But, at least tell me he hasn't read it."

"The red one has not read it, Sir."

"How is that even possible?" he asked, slightly disappointed.

"Ruskle put it in his bag, Sir. So that he might stumble upon it. Young Master did ask Ruskle to be discrete. But the red one has not looked far enough into his bag to find it yet."

"And you haven't been able to get close enough to take it back?"

"No Sir. Whenever Ruskle gets close enough, he cannot find it in the time he is given."

"Well, keep trying. Whatever happens, you _cannot_ let him read that letter. It is a matter of life and death." Literally. If Hermione found out about what he'd done or – worse - how he'd lied to her about it, she would not hesitate to kill him.

"Ruskle will make sure the red ones eyes never come upon it, Sir," said the house-elf devotedly.

"Good," said Draco, glancing at the tents entrance. Hermione's silhouette shined through the fabric. He smiled. "And stop reporting to my mum about me and Hermione. Her letters are starting to get frightening."

"B-but Ruskle cannot lie to his mistress, Young Master."

"Don't think of it as lying. Think of it as … _morphing_ the truth a bit. Say we work together amicably," which was true … most of the time, "but our relationship does not extend beyond that."

"B-b-but –"

"Ruskle! You will do this one favor for me or, by Merlin, I will not call you here again! Do you hear me?"

"Y-yes Young Master. I will do as you please."

"Good," he said, relaxing a bit. "You are dismissed."

_Pop_!

As soon as he was gone, Draco picked up his backpack, took a deep breath, and walked outside, appearing completely cool to the untrained eye. Even though he was cursing on the inside. Why had he done something so stupid? Clearly, he was too impulsive. But, then again, if he wasn't impulsive he never would have kissed Hermione in the first place, and that made it all worth it.

Outside, she was waiting for him with a smile. Her soft hair fell loosely at her shoulders in perfect ringlets. He went over to her, pulled one, and let it bounce back into place. "Oh, you like it?" she asked. He nodded, doing the same thing over again. "Sophie gave me this potion to use. I've been a bit lazy about it, but it really is easier than having to put my hair back all the time."

"Smells nice," he said, moving her hair to the side and sniffing around the nape of her neck. Sometimes he loved to just breathe her in.

Hermione giggled. "Draco, stop that. It tickles."

"Does it turn you on?" he asked, nuzzling up against her.

"N-no," she said, a shiver running from her neck to her spine, and all the way down to her toes.

"'Ave you two steell not packed up your tent?" asked Sophie, walking over from Merlin knows where. Phillip was just behind her. "Stop 'orsing around. Mr. Olleevander weell be contacting us any meenute."

Draco grunted as Hermione pushed him away. She took out her wand and went to work on dismembering their tent.

Narrowing his eyes at Sophie and Phillip, Draco walked over to them and asked, "Where have you two been?"

"Nowhere," they answered in unison.

Draco leaned forward and plucked a twig out of Sophie's hair. "Nowhere huh? I highly doubt that." He winked at them before walking back to help Hermione. They both glared after him.

When the tent was all packed up and everyone was ready for departure, they all sat around in a circle, waiting for Mr. Ollivander's instructions to arrive.

"Do you zink we are going to be separated for ze rest of ze summer?" asked Sophie, a little downhearted.

"I'm sure he won't have all four of us together again, but maybe we can request to mix it up a bit," said Hermione, smiling at the moping witch.

Sophie immediately perked up. "Yes! Great idea! We must request to work togezer for at least a week! Sophie and 'Ermione togezer again!" She jumped forward with her arms held wide and gave Hermione a big hug.

"I don't think that's true," said Draco. Sophie immediately shot him a look. "Not about mixing it up, Sophie. I mean about the four of us working together. If he really does want the heartstrings of dragons he's going to have to put us all back together. It's too big of a job for just two people. If he wants it done right, meaning no death, we'll need all four of us."

"If not more," laughed Phillip.

"We are_ not_ calling Annaleigh and 'er group! I would razer die by ze talons of a dragon zen ask 'er for 'elp!"

"But if we did call them, chances are Daniel would come too. They say third times a charm," said Hermione with a wink.

Sophie and Phillip exchanged a look. Draco grinned widely. "Zat ees not necessary. Eet ees obviously not meant to be."

"Aw, why not?"

Right when Draco opened his mouth to, once again, try and out their comrades, Mr. Ollivander's owl swooped in and dropped two letters. One between Sophie and Phillip, and the other between Hermione and Draco. Sophie and Draco each grabbed their respective letters and read their instructions.

"'E 'as setup a portkey for us about a mile away from 'ere. Eet ees going to take us to Alaska. Ees eet cold zere zis time of year?" she asked, throwing down the letter. "Because I 'ave not packed for ze cold!

"I'm sure it's fine,' said Hermione, peeking over Draco's shoulder to see where they were going. "Looks like we're flying. He wants us to find some mythical tree in the wizarding part of the Grand Canyon."

"So zis ees really 'appening?" asked Sophie, her eyes already glossing over. "I cannot believe zis ees really eet. Oh, 'Ermione!" She jumped into the other witches arms, crying into her shoulder while Hermione patted her on the back.

"It's alright, Sophie. This isn't goodbye. We'll see each other again."

Draco and Phillip were more interested in watching the two girls hug than saying goodbye to each other. Though, they did each give a cordial nod.

When Sophie finally let Hermione go she was full on weeping. Even Hermione was a little teary. After each shared a civil hug with the witch or wizard it didn't work out with, they all took out their brooms, waved goodbye, and flew off in their opposite directions.

While Hermione was a little sad, Draco was relieved. Now the summer fun could really begin.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: So I didn't plan for this next part to be an entire chapter, but it worked out that way, haha. I promise the chapter after this will be a more adventurous one.**

**I also wanted to warn everyone that I probably won't be posting another update within the next week. There is a very important project I have to work on and if I finish it early I will write some more, but at this point I don't know if that's going to happen.**

**So enjoy this chapter, hold onto your panties, and we'll meet back here next week ;-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The first week Hermione and Draco spent traveling without Phillip and Sophie was definitely a good one. By day they collected woods – four woods in six days – and by night they finally got to spend the intimate time they'd been longing for, without any interruptions. Other than an occasional pop in from Ruskle here and there, but that wasn't anything they couldn't handle quickly.

_Pop_!

"Ruskle, get the bloody hell out of here!" yelled Draco, throwing a pillow at the small house-elf.

"So sorry, Young Master. Ruskle will not return again until you call him forth."

While it sounded good in theory, the elf never kept his word for more than a day. He was back every morning like clockwork, and if Draco didn't banish him then, he would be back during other various parts of the day.

Hermione could not help but notice how frequent his visits were becoming. While she desperately wanted to ask Draco if his father's condition was worsening, she refrained. He wasn't ready to talk about it and she respected that. Well, that's what she told herself, anyway. Secretly, she was _dying_ to know.

Unfortunately, the sad truth was, without Sophie and Phillip there was a lot more silence to fill. Hermione and Draco didn't know how to just have a conversation with each other. To avoid the silence the two would often enter into some passionate lovemaking, but that could only fill the void for so long.

Really, the two of them just didn't have anything in common.

"So you honestly believe house-elves are happier as _slaves_?"

"Ah! Not slaves, Hermione. _Servants_."

"They are not _servants_ you pitiful excuse for a human being!"

"I'm not a human, I'm a wizard."

"Wizards _are_ humans!"

"You see, that sounds exactly like something a Mudbloo – Muggle-born would say."

"I _am_ a Muggle-born you half-wit!"

"Who're you calling _half-wit_ you bushy-haired beaver!"

Hermione threw her hand over her mouth to cover her teeth. "That is _not_ fair! I have not had beaver teeth in a long time!"

"_Yeeeaah_. Thanks to me. You're welcome, by the way."

Hermione turned red with rage. Her fists clenching as she scowled at him with a fiery hatred. Draco took this moment to grab her by the waist and throw her onto the bed. He was going to put Sophie's 'angry sex' theory to the test.

As it turned out, Sophie wasn't lying. Angry sex was, in fact, very hot. They kept arguing throughout it, and there was even a moment in the middle where Hermione got so mad she slapped him. Draco was surprised at how into it he was. He even told her to do it again, which she did willingly.

Unfortunately, Draco wasn't as into the repercussions of their passion as he was into the heat of the moment. It took a lot of convincing, but Hermione finally agreed to cast a healing spell on it. She was much better at them than he was.

When their passion commenced the two of them sat on opposite sides of the couch in their tent, once again met with awkward silence, both of them contemplating bringing the house-elf topic up again just so they would have something to talk about.

"I never thought I'd be saying this, but I think I actually miss Sophie," said Draco, throwing his head back and looking up at the ceiling.

"Yes, she definitely had a way of killing the silence," said Hermione doing the same. Then, turning her head back towards him, she added, "Draco, this isn't healthy."

"What isn't?"

"You know."

"What?" he asked, turning his head to face hers. "What do I know?"'

"_You know_ … filling the void with … what we fill the void with."

"And what would that be?" Draco turned sideways, propping his elbow against the back of the couch. Hermione blushed before turning away. "By Merlin, you can't say the word 'sex', can you?"

"_What_? Of course I can!"

"Then say it," he said smiling. Hermione didn't respond. "Oh my Merlin! You really can't! How about 'shag'? I _know_ I've heard you say 'shag' before."

Hermione groaned. "Only when mocking you."

Draco burst into hysterical laughter. Hermione threw a pillow at him. He caught it and gave her a slight smack with it.

"Come on, Hermione. Say it. Just once. For me?"

Hermione glanced sideways into his pleading eyes, breathed heavily through her nose and said, "Sex."

That was enough to make Draco fall to the floor, laughing. She rolled her eyes and tried to walk away, but he grabbed her foot and pulled her down with him, kissing her passionately as the two rolled around on the floor.

Hermione kissed back for a while, but when he began running his fingers along the seam of her pajama bottoms, she pushed him off, climbed to her feet and yelled, "No, no, no! We are not doing this _again_, Draco!"

"Doing what?" he asked innocently.

"Filling 'the void' with _sex_," she answered. Draco laughed some more. "I'm serious, Draco! If you and I are going to spend the next two months with only each other's company, we are going to have to learn to communicate with one another."

"I thought we were already communicating pretty well," he said with a wink.

Hermione furrowed her brow. "Not in the bedroom, you half-wit."

"Try a better nickname, will you?"

"Okay cockroach! Albino chauvinist! _The Amazing Bouncing Ferret!_"

Draco frowned while climbing back onto the couch. "Low blow, Hermione." He did not care for those 'bouncing ferret' memories.

"Can you please just cooperate for one minute? I want to have an actual conversation. Where we _actually_ learn things about one another."

"I can do that," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her down beside him. "How about a game of twenty questions?" That seemed harmless enough. While Hermione thought about this, Draco added, "Only no questions about my family."

Giving him a sideways smile, Hermione put her hand on his knee and said, "Alright Draco. I won't ask you any questions about your family, as long as you don't ask me questions about Ron. Deal?" She held her free hand out to him.

Draco smirked, shook it, and said, "Deal." Before letting her hand go he gave it a kiss. While he was willing to keep her happy by playing her game now, he still planned on shagging again later.

"Okay then. Let's start simple. What is your favorite color?"

"Green."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Of course it is. You are a Slytherin through and through."

"Well, what's yours?" he asked.

"Red."

Now it was Draco's turn to roll his eyes. "A Gryffindor through and through. You might as well just call it _scarlet_."

"Red was my favorite color long before I became a Gryffindor. Next question. What's your favorite food?"

"Canard à la Rouennaise."

Hermione crinkled her nose. "That's disgusting. Though, I'm not surprised."

Draco smiled. "It's a Malfoy family favorite. Ruskle cooks it beautifully. I'm going to have to ask him to make it for us one night."

"No thanks," said Hermione, nearly vomiting at the thought.

Laughing, Draco said, "Fine. For your simpleminded benefit, I will say my favorite food is Cauldron Cakes. Better?"

Hermione nodded. "Yes, much. It's your question."

"Alright. What's _your_ favorite food?"

Hermione rolled her eyes again. "You're not just going to repeat my questions the entire time, are you?"

"Depends on how good your questions are. That counts, by the way," he said winking. Hermione frowned. "Now answer."

"Well, I suppose if I really could only choose one food to eat for the rest of my life, it would have to by my mom's roast beef."

"Roast beef? Really?"

"Yes, roast beef, and yes, really. That's two more for you, by the way." She winked. Draco shook his head, smiling. She was a clever girl. Perhaps a little too clever. "But, if you must know, my mom always made the traditional Sunday Roast. Roast beef, potatoes, vegetables, Yorkshire pudding. As a kid it was something I looked forward to every week but, now, I haven't had it in years." Hermione paused, staring pensively in front of her. "Until this moment, I don't even think I realized how much I've missed Sunday Roast."

Leaning across the couch, Draco gave her a nudge on the cheek and said, "Stop being such a downer, Hermione. This is supposed to be a fun game. Remem –" He glanced at her as she started to smile. "Oh no. I'm not getting caught in that one again. I'm already down by one. Your turn."

"And I get two in a row this time. To even things out," she said smiling. "Okay, first one."

Their first ten questions or so they kept pretty innocent. They were mostly about favorites. Favorite spell, favorite band, favorite sexual position (Draco's question, not Hermione's), favorite book, etc. Hermione talked about that last one for twenty minutes, constantly changing her answer before deciding there were too many books in the world to _ever_ choose a favorite. Though, _Hogwarts, a History_ did come up several times.

It wasn't until question twelve when Hermione finally got up the nerve to ask a question she actually wanted to know the answer to. "What is Mr. Ollivander paying you to do this job?"

Draco shook his head. "Nope. I told you in Paris I wasn't going to answer that until you could answer why you didn't say yes to Weasel."

"Oh no you don't!" she said, dramatically pointing at him. "You only said no questions about your family. All previous rules have become invalid."

"But you said no questions about Weasley and I've stuck to that. I won't give you my answer if you don't give me yours."

"But you have to. In accordance with the rules, you must answer any question I ask as long as I avoid the forbidden topics. Otherwise known as Ron and your family. If you don't answer this then I refuse to answer any more."

"That's not fair!"

"Life isn't always fair, Draco! Answer now or I'm going to bed."

Draco grunted. Then, under his breath, he said, "Wwmnd …"

"What was that?" asked Hermione, holding her ear out towards him.

"I said he's paying me with a wand."

"A wand?"

"Yes," he said. "And that counts."

"But you already have a wand," said Hermione, not even caring that she'd lost another question.

Draco took his wand out of his pocket and handed it to her. "It's my grandfather's old wand. My mother dug it up after the war. I'm sure you recall Potter never gave mine back."

"Well, he sort of needed it," Hermione said loyally, but when she saw Draco's sullen face, she added, "I suppose he should have given it back afterwards, but _your_ wand is the wand that killed You-Know-Who. It's kind of iconic."

"While that's all fine and dandy for whichever museum wants to put it on display –"

"The Museum of Magical and Mystical Relics."

"What?"

"Nothing."

Draco narrowed his eyes. "As I was saying – while that's all fine and dandy for you and the rest of the _golden trio_, I have been unable to acquire another wand since."

"Why?"

"This counts," he said. She didn't argue. "Because Mr. Ollivander won't sell me one. I know I could always just go somewhere else, but his are the best. So, for the past three years I've been doing odd jobs for him in an attempt to earn his trust and, along with that, a wand."

"I was wondering why the two of you got on so well. Especially after – well, you know," she said, pulling down her sleeve to cover the scars on her arm. It was a constant reminder of something she desperately wanted to forget.

Draco looked down at her arm and frowned. "Yes, well, trust takes time. He contacted me only hours before our departure for the summer, saying he was short a man. Someone had to quit at the last minute. He said if I took this job, and proved myself worthy, he would give me a wand at the end of the summer."

Still staring down at her arm, Hermione weakly smiled and said, "I think you've done pretty well so far. Maybe you'll even get a wand made from some of the materials we collected."

Draco smirked. "It would be more gratifying knowing we did all this work for a worthy wizard."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "As full of yourself as always, I see. It's your question."

"Hold that thought," said Draco, getting to his feet and running to the kitchen. He came back two minutes later with a butterbeer and whiskey for Hermione and a firewhiskey for himself. "I can see the road we're heading down and alcohol's the only way I'm going down it."

Hermione was hesitant, but still took the alcohol. Draco refused to continue their game until her drink was at least half gone. "I really think this is a bad idea, Draco," said Hermione, taking another big swig of her drink. "Pretty much every night we've had alcohol on this trip has ended in some sort of confrontation."

"While that may be true, we've had plenty of confrontation without the aid of a drink too. Now, it's time for my question. Did you ever fantasize about me at all while we were in school?"

Hermione chuckled. "No."

"Come on now, Hermione. Be honest."

"I am being honest. I hated you too much to fantasize about you. Did you ever fantasize about me?"

Draco thought about this. "Just once. The Yule Ball, fourth year. You looked pretty hot. Especially in comparison to Parkinson, who I was stuck with."

Even though Hermione enjoyed the Pansy bashing, she still rolled her eyes. "Of course. The one day I _actually_ tried in school is the only time you ever noticed me. Haven't you ever thought a girl was cute when looking completely natural?"

"This counts!" he said. "And yes. I think you look pretty cute right now, and you're in pajamas with polar bears on them."

Hermione looked down at her animated bears and laughed. She never even thought about trying to dress up for bed when around Draco. For the first year she and Ron lived together that was all she thought about, even though they had seen each other in their pajamas a million times.

"I like my bears," she said smiling.

"As do I," he said, stroking one of the white bears just above her knee.

She pushed his hand away. "Not until the games over, Draco. It's your turn and you're three behind. Get to it."

Draco frowned. "I want to but you won't let me." Hermione gave him a playful shove. He caught her hand and pulled her in for a kiss. When he pulled away he looked into her eyes and asked her, "What happened to the Hippogriff that was supposed to be executed."

Hermione sighed. She didn't want to tell him this story but, in accordance with the rules, she had to. "We set it free and then used it to help Sirius Black escape. It was with him for a while, but when he died Harry inherited it. After the war he set it free. I don't know where it is now." That was a lie. She knew perfectly well that Buckbeak was back at Hogwarts. But there was no way in hell she was telling him that. She didn't trust him that much yet.

"I'm sure there's more to this story, but I'm going to let it go. No sense dwelling in the past. Now, who's better in bed? Me or Weasel?"

"Draco!" she yelled, aghast.

Draco raised his eyebrows suggestively. "Me then?" Hermione shook her head. "Oh right. I should word it differently so as not to break any rules." He cleared his throat. "Am I the best shag you're ever had?"

"It's not that simple, Draco. I can't just –"

"A yes or no will suffice."

Hermione grunted. "Fine. No."

Draco was taken aback. "No? Why the bloody hell not?"

"It's different," she said. "And that counts, so now we're even. We each have five left."

"I need a more elaborate answer, Hermione. 'It's different' is not good enough."

"But it _is_ different," she repeated. "Phillip said it best. You and I have passion, both in and out of the bedroom. But Ron and I … when we're together it's about more than just shagging. There are genuine feelings there, and that adds an entirely new element into the mix."

"And that makes it better?"

Hermione sighed. "Yes. It really does. And I'm even going to let that question slide."

"Fine," he said, seriously thinking about her answer. It had gone very differently in his head. "Your turn then."

"Okay …" she said, thinking hard about what her next question should be. She'd had good success with her last serious question. Maybe she would try her luck and ask another one. "Why don't you ever write to your friends? I understand you're having issues with your family, but why waste your letter each week? There has to be someone you –"

_Crash_!

Hermione jumped. She had been so busy talking she hadn't noticed Draco cringe with fury before throwing his glass across the room. She looked at the shattered glass, and then at him with worried eyes.

"Draco, did I say something wr –"

"I'm done playing this stupid game," he said, getting up from his seat and walking into the kitchen, where he proceeded to pour himself another drink.

Hermione took out her wand and cleaned up the mess before joining him in the kitchen. She tried to grab his hand but he pulled it away, refusing to look her in the eye. "I don't know what I did wrong," she said. "Why don't you want to tell me anything?"

"Because it's none of your bloody business, Granger!" Hermione frowned. She didn't like being Granger again. "Stop trying to pry yourself into my life! I wasn't asking you horribly personal questions."

"Yes you were!" she yelled, still trying to catch his eye. "They were a different kind of personal, but personal, nonetheless. I just don't have as many dark secrets as you."

"My secrets aren't dark! For some reason you always expect the worst of me, don't you?"

"Well, you haven't exactly given me a reason to think otherwise."

"You want to know the truth?"

Hermione nodded. "Yes."

"The real truth?"

"Yes, I do," she said.

"Well, the real truth is that my bloody friends aren't as loyal as yours are! If it wasn't completely obvious, I wasn't exactly on the Dark Lord's side in the end. Goyle saw it when I wanted Potter to find that bloody tiara thing."

"Diadem," corrected Hermione.

"Whatever! Is that really what's important right now?" Hermione shook her head shamefully. "Now, if I _might _continue! After the war Goyle told everyone I was disloyal. Didn't even care that I almost died trying to save his pointless life. Said he would've rather burned to death than have to admit he was saved by Potty and friends, and everyone thought I should've felt the same. No one would even speak to me after that. I got dumped by _bloody_ Parkinson! Can you imagine?"

Hermione had to fight really hard not to chuckle. Even she had to admit that Pansy dumping Draco was absurd. The pug-faced witch wasn't going to do any better. Surely even she – as dim-witted as she was – realized that.

"My family lost their pull in the wizarding world, I lost my friends, we all lost respect, and my bloody father is too encompassed in his own selfish grief to do anything about it! And that's the truth you've been so _desperately_ trying to uncover! Are you satisfied now?"

She wasn't. Hermione had really been hoping the answer to her question was something simple like, 'I've outgrown them', but nothing with Draco Malfoy was ever that simple.

"I'm really sorry you had to go through that, Draco, but don't you think you're better off? It's not like Goyle or Parkinson or any of the other Slytherin's were quality friends."

"And what? Potter and Weasel are?"

"Well, yes … yes, they are. Harry and Ron would gladly risk their lives for me. They _have_ risked their lives for me. But while you were pulling Crabbe out of the way of my spells and struggling to carry a stunned Goyle, what did they do?" When Draco didn't answer, Hermione took it upon herself to do it for him. "They did _nothing_, Draco. You are better than them. Why do you care what they think?"

"Because they're the only bloody friends I've ever had, Granger! I need some air!"

"No!" Draco darted for the exit, "No!" but Hermione jumped onto his back to stop him. "No! You are _not_ running out on me while angry _again_!"

"Get off me, Granger!" he yelled, trying to pry her arms from around his neck.

"No! And stop calling me that! It's Hermione! Remember?"

"Then get off me, _Hermione_! I don't bloody care who you are right now! I just want to go outside and be _alone_!"

"No! I won't let you!" Hermione cried into his hair. "We are going to talk about this like civilized adults."

"Fine!" he said, flipping her off of him and onto the couch for a cushy landing. "I'll stay on one condition!" Hermione sat up and waited. "I want you to answer one question for me. No sugar-coated answers, no beating around the bush, just an honest answer. Can you do that?"

Hermione thought deeply about this before looking into his hard gray eyes and nodding. The truth was there was nothing he could ask her that she couldn't answer. She was almost positive she knew what the question was going to be. And while she didn't want to answer it, she would.

Leaning over the back of the couch, Draco looked into her amber eyes and asked, "Why Ron?"

Even though she had been expecting it, Hermione was still taken aback, especially by the sound of Draco saying Ron's name. This had to be a first in history. "I know you don't have the highest opinion of him, Draco, but Ron has a good heart. He always means well, even if it doesn't work out that way."

"That doesn't answer my question. There are _tons_ of wizards with good hearts out there, but you chose him. Why?"

"I –" She wanted to say she didn't know, but Hermione knew that answer would never satisfy Draco. She needed to delve into something deeper. What was it that first drew her to Ron? "I suppose it's not just one thing. It's the whole package. He comes from a loving family with good values, he can be really sweet when he wants to me, he's incredibly loyal, he cares for me dearly –"

"_Ugh_, please stop, Hermione. I think I just might vomit."

"You asked me to be honest."

"And you just described a million guys in your honesty. What I wanna know is what makes him unique? There has to be one specific reason you chose him over all the rest. So what is it?"

"I –"Hermione froze. She couldn't believe it. She really had absolutely no idea. "We've been through so much together."

"You've been through all the same stuff with Potter. Why not him then?"

"That was simple. "Because I don't feel _it_ with Harry. He's like my brother."

"And why do you feel _it_ with Weasley?"

"I – I don't know," she said, finally giving in. "You can't exactly explain the rules of attraction."

"Well, try!"

"Why?"

"You said you would answer this one question for me, so try!"

"I don't have an answer, Draco! _Why_ is it so important that I do?"

"Because!"

"Because why?"

"_Because he's not good enough for you_!"

Her mouth agape, Hermione looked at Draco with cold eyes. "And just who are _you_ to make that call? You don't even know him!"

Hermione jumped up from the couch and darted for the exit. Draco grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. "Hermione, wait!"

"Let me go, Draco!" she yelled, prying at his fingers. "You're hurting me!"

"If I can't leave, neither can you!" he yelled back at her, swinging her towards the couch. He let her go and she crashed into the back of it.

Hermione looked down at her pink wrist and then up at him with tear-stained eyes. "What the _hell_ is wrong with you? You can't just treat people however you please! I may not be a pureblood but I'm still a bloody human being!" she yelled, throwing the nearest cushion at him.

He caught it and tossed it to the side. "You did the same bloody thing to me! You thinking jumping on my back was being gentle?"

"I wasn't aiming to hurt you, Draco! I just wanted to stop you!"

"And I wasn't aiming to hurt you either! It's not even going to bruise! Just wave your wand and it'll be fine."

"Fine?" she repeated. He nodded. "_Fine_? You think this is _fine_? How the 'bloody hell' do you like it, Draco?" she yelled, lunging forward and punching her fists repeatedly into his chest.

"Stop that!" he yelled, grabbing both of her wrists and pushing her back. Hermione stared at him horrorstruck. Draco looked back at her with the same confounded eyes. "Hermione, no … I didn't mean to … oh, Merlin …"

Draco ran into the nearest corner and sunk to the floor, covering his face with his hands. Hermione could hear him sobbing into them, but was too stunned to go to him. She slid down the back of the couch and stared down at her wrists, following them up to the scars all along her forearm, the faint markings of the word 'Mudblood' forever engraved in her porcelain skin.

Hermione sighed. Still tracing her scars, she quietly said, "Ron called for me. Screamed for me while your aunt tortured me. His voice was faint, but I could hear him. Knowing he was there was one of the only things that kept me going. He's always been there, fighting for me when I needed him. That's why I chose him, Draco."

Hermione got up from the ground, walked over to where Draco sat crouched and said, "Get up." Draco didn't budge. "I said _get up_, Draco." The blonde wizard stood from the ground, but he did not turn around. Hermione went up behind him and grabbed his left arm, turning it so as to reveal the faint scar that once was the Dark Mark. "Did you know you always hold this arm inward, so as to hide it? I never knew I did, until Ron pointed it out last year. I was so ashamed of something I had absolutely no control over. I still am, I think. Are you ashamed, Draco?"

"Yes," said Draco, his arm flinching at her touch, but Hermione kept a firm grip on it, tracing the remains with the tip of her finger.

"At least yours looks kind of cool. Mine's just a dirty word."

"Neither look very cool," he said, turning so he could trace the word on Hermione's arm. "You still try to hide it."

"I know," she said. "It's hard not to. When people see it they always ask about it. There's no good answer for how I got this scar."

"At least you could make up a story if you wanted. Everyone already knows what mine means. I'm a despicable Dark Lord following traitor. Not exactly a title I'm fond of."

"You're not a traitor, Draco. You never killed anyone."

"I tortured people."

"While You-Know-Who was looking over your shoulder. You didn't have a choice."

"Stop making excuses for me, Hermione. I always had a choice. I could have chosen death."

Hermione frowned down at the faint skull with the serpent coming out of its mouth. Rubbing her hand along the scar, she said, "Well, if it's any consolation, I'm glad you didn't."

Taking her hands in his own, Draco looked at her and said, "I'm sorry I hurt you, Hermione. I really didn't mean to but, sometimes, I just lose control. Another horrible trait I picked up from my father."

"Another? What's the first?"

"I don't know if you've noticed this before, but both of us have really pointy faces."

Hermione laughed. "Really? You don't say."

Draco gave a faint chuckle before pulling her close and wrapping his arms around her shoulders. Hermione wrapped hers around his waist, pressing her ear against his bare chest.

"Worst game _ever_," he said.

Hermione chuckled into his arm. "Did we ever get to twenty?"

Draco shrugged. "Probably. There were a lot of questions being spit out during our quarrel. Either way I'm done answering questions for the day. The summer really."

"I agree. No more trying to force conversation between us. It should just come naturally."

After a few more minutes of holding each other, Hermione and Draco turned off the lights and climbed into their bed. They kissed softly for a while, clothes coming off slowly as they took the time to memorize each other's bodies, Draco even stopping to take a moment and kiss the scars on Hermione's arms.

Draco knew from the moment they started that this time was different. There was no heat, no fire, no random slaps in the midst of passion. But there was time to just relax and stare at each other. Draco stroked Hermione's cheek as she looked up at him, her eyes filled with soft pleasure. For the first time the two of them kissed as they finished, both overcome with the most powerful euphoria. The two kept their eyes fixed on each other as they lay their afterwards. Eventually the two fell asleep, still facing one another, Draco's hand resting on her cheek while hers rested on his left arm.

Draco woke up in the middle of the night, suddenly realizing that this was what Hermione meant. _This_ was better than passion. But what was it? Surely it wasn't … Oh bloody Merlin, what was happening to him?


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Surprise, surprise. Another long chapter I had to split! Haha!**

**I know I had promised this within a week, but when I finally had time to write again I had a mild case of writer's block. Sorry :-(**

**And I know I said there would be action in this chapter - which there is! - but all of the action is in part 2! But I like this part anyway :-)**

**So, without further ado …**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

When Draco awoke the next morning he and Hermione were still facing each other. He reached his hand out to touch her cheek, but when she stirred he pulled it away. It wasn't until he heard her mumble his name that he put it back.

"Take _that_ Weasel," he thought, still blindly unaware of his own feelings for the witch beside him.

While it made things easier to say he only got involved with her for the ultimate revenge, it was getting harder to convince himself that was true. Especially when she looked so beautiful laying there, her hair loose around the pillow in tousled waves and her eyelashes fluttering as she started to wake from the touch of his hand.

Still half-asleep, Hermione put her hand on his and sighed. Draco caught a peek of the scar on the inside of her arm and hated himself for ever using such a vulgar word on her. She didn't deserve what had happened to her.

Moving her hand to behind his back, Hermione squeezed Draco closer to her, breathing in that wonderful, spicy scent he always emitted. "How do you always smell so nice?" she asked, still in a dreamy state.

Draco laughed. "Did you mean to say that, 'Mione?"

Hermione smiled. "Mmmhmm. Is that your new nickname for me?"

"Should it be?" he asked.

"I don't see why not. I know Hermione can be a bit of a mouthful."

"Does Weasley call you 'Mione?"

"Nope," she said, nuzzling deep into his neck.

"Then 'Mione it is!" he said, now taking his turn to breath her in. "If it's any consolation, you always smell nice too."

"I suppose it's always good to hear you don't smell like garbage." Hermione laughed. "Do we have to wake up?" she asked, squeezing him tighter. "I just want to sleep in for once."

And then, right on cue, in flew the owl. Hermione frowned. Draco gave her a kiss on her pouty lips before sitting up and catching the falling letters. The owl then proceeded to land on the bedpost, all the while watching them.

"Sometimes that thing creeps me out," said Hermione, sitting up and wrapping her arms around Draco's waist. He put one arm around her shoulders while shuffling through the letters with his free hand.

"Looks like Sophie sent you something. I guess Mr. Ollivander doesn't count interoffice communication as part of our weekly total."

"Oh, wonderful," said Hermione, taking the letter happily.

While she read Sophie's letter, Draco perused through the one from Mr. Ollivander. Draco smiled as he got to the end. "Looks like we've been upgraded," he said. "This time we're looking for a Phoenix in the mountains near Minsk."

"Minsk?" repeated Hermione, putting down Sophie's letter. "Where the giant colony is? Has he gone mad?"

"Wasn't that before the war, though? Maybe it's not so much a colony anymore, but a small cluster. We can handle a cluster."

"If you say so," she said, returning to her letter.

"So what are our French pastry and the rock up to?" he asked, climbing out of bed and pulling on some boxers. He took his letter from his mother and stuffed it into his backpack. It was shaping up to be a good morning and he didn't want to ruin it by reading it now.

"Oh, nothing too exciting. Their week has been about as eventful as ours. Alaska, New Zealand, China again. Oooh, Australia. I haven't been there since I went to find my parents after the war, and even then it wasn't exactly a leisurely visit." Draco tossed her an apple from the kitchen while biting into one himself. She fumbled with it, but still managed to hold on. Taking a bite, she asked, "Why do you think Mr. Ollivander sends us on these spread out missions? If he wanted two kinds of wood from China then we should have gotten both of them when we were there before. Two-thirds of the time we spend on this job is traveling. We could probably triple our productivity if he planned it out better."

"I think he's just winging it," said Draco, taking another bite of his own apple. "You know Sophie and Phillip are shagging, right?"

Hermione dropped her apple onto the letter. "What?"

"The two of them are shagging. I'm not sure when it started, but they definitely did it that last night we were all together. Didn't you notice the way they were acting?"

"Uh, _no_, because they weren't acting any differently. I think you're mistaken, Draco. The two of them don't see each other that way."

"I'd bet on my mother's life they are."

"Don't bet on your mother's life!"

"Then what do _you_ wanna bet?" A light triggered in Draco's head. "How about if I'm right you have to do that thing you never do," he said, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

Hermione huffed. "And what do I get if I'm right?"

"Whatever you want, sweetheart," winked Draco.

"Alright," she said, giving him a sideways smile. "If I'm right _you_ have to wait on Ruskle for a week. He won't be allowed to lift a finger. While here, anyway."

"That's fine. It's not like I'll ever have to do that. I already know I'm right," he said confidently.

"You're not right."

Draco continued to munch on his apple while Hermione started to read her other letter. He started looking through their cabinets to see what else they had to eat. When he closed the last one with little success, he turned around and jumped. Hermione was now standing directly behind him with a gleam of murder in her eye.

"_What_ _did you do_?"

"What do you mean?" he asked, all of a sudden very aware that Ruskle had never reported back to him about the letter he'd sent Weasel.

"I would explain it to you, but I really think Ron says it best. Here, let me _read_ it to you." Hermione lifted the letter, cleared her throat and read:

_Dear Hermione,_

_ The strangest thing just happened. I was reaching into my bag for a quill and parchment to write to you when I came out with an unopened letter addressed to me. At first I thought it was from you but the handwriting was much too pompous to ever be yours._

Draco huffed. Hermione scowled at him before continuing:

_Then, right when I started to open it a house-elf came out of nowhere and tackled me. The bloody thing tore the letter right out of my hands before running off. I tried to chase it but it disapparated before I could catch it. Maybe I'm crazy, but I could've sworn it was the same bloody elf we saw with Malfoy at the beginning of the summer, but why the hell would Malfoy want to steal a letter from me? You're with him, right? What are your thoughts on it?_

"Do you _also_ want to hear my thoughts on it, Draco?"

"Not really."

"Well, that's too bloody bad because you're going to get a mouthful! You _promised_ me you didn't do anything else while mad at me! Was that all a _lie_? Or did you do this after?" Her eyes narrowed. "_Oooh_, you better not have done this after!"

"I didn't do it after."

"Then you _did_ lie!"

"Well, that depends on how you look at it," he said nonchalantly. "I _was_ hoping to get the letter back before any damage was done so it couldn't be classified as a lie. I gave the damn elf one task."

"Whether he found it or not still makes your promise to me a lie, Draco! You _did_ do something else when angry with me! You were just hoping to cover your tracks! How am I supposed to trust you again?"

Draco flashed her a toothy grin. "It was a onetime fluke. I promise."

"Your _promise_ is rubbish!" she yelled, throwing the remains of her apple at him. "Ruskle! Where are you? Show yourself now!"

"What are you doing, 'Mione? You know a house-elf will only answer when called by its master."

"Then call him! Call him _now_!"

"Why?"

"Because I want to see it! I want to see _exactly_ what you wrote to him!"

"I assure you, you don't."

"Call him!"

Draco grunted. "Fine. But you're not going to like it."

"I already don't like it!"

Draco rolled his eyes before calling out, "Ruskle! Show yourself please!"

_Pop_!

"Y-you called, Young Master."

Draco turned to the elf, crossed his arms and frowned. "It _seems_ you were not as discrete as I'd hoped."

The house-elf bowed his head in shame. "Ruskle is sorry, Sir. The red one got to the letter before he could retrieve it, so Ruskle panicked and knocked him over. But Ruskle got the letter, Sir. Unopened, just as you requested."

"Let me see it," demanded Hermione, holding out her hand.

Ruskle looked to Draco, who nodded. The small elf disapparated and then apparated again a minute later, holding the letter. Hermione yanked it out of his hand and tore it open. The moment her eyes started scanning the letter her jaw dropped. She let out several huffs as her hands began to shake, her nails digging deeper and deeper into the parchment until it was shredded into a million tiny pieces.

"Did you _have_ to go into such graphic detail?" she asked, her eyes nearly bugging out of their sockets.

Ruskle cowered into a corner while Draco stood his ground. The letter was never seen by Weasel's eyes. As far as he was concerned he did nothing wrong. There was no reason for her to be so angry.

"Of course I did," he said. "I was aiming to hurt."

"Well … mission accomplished!" shouted Hermione with tears in her eyes. She tried to turn away but Draco pulled her back.

"No, no. You got it all wrong. I didn't want to hurt _you_. I wanted to hurt _him_."

"Do you truly not realize that when you hurt Ron you also hurt me? It's a packaged deal, Draco."

Draco cringed at the very graphic image that suddenly flooded his mind. "If I'd known that I _never_ would have signed up for this."

Hermione rolled her glossy eyes. "Don't be perverted. You _know_ what I meant."

She started to walk away but, once again, Draco pulled her back. "You're not seriously going to waste time being mad at me, are you?"

"Waste time? _Waste time_!" she said, her nostrils flaring while her eyes set ablaze. "You were mad at me for four days for invading _your_ privacy! Well, guess what, _Draco_? _This_ is the ultimate privacy invasion! I'd say I deserve at least – _at least_ four days!"

"Come on 'Mione."

"Don't you use that cute little nickname on me, Malfoy!" she said, holding one stern finger in his face.

"Okay then. _Hermione_," he corrected, taking her hands in his own. "I've learned the error of my ways. It's time you learned yours."

"What does that mean?" she asked, trying to pull her hands away, but he kept a firm grip on them.

"It means we shouldn't waste all of this time being angry with one another. The summers nearly half over, and when it is we both have to go back to our normal lives and pretend this never happened. _That's_ when we should vent our anger." Draco pulled her in and started nuzzling on her neck. "I'm not asking you to forgive me, all I'm asking is that you hold it in for just a little bit longer. Seven weeks to be exact."

"Draco … no … I'm – I'm still mad. I can't just … forget …" Hermione bit her bottom lip as his hands began to caress her body. She couldn't hold it in any longer. Letting out a small moan, Hermione closed her eyes and said, "Honestly, being with you is compromising all of my moral integrity."

"But you love it," he said as he began to tear off her robe, "don't you?"

"_Love_ is not the right word," she said, finally giving in and meeting his lips with hers.

Between strokes of Hermione's tongue, Draco looked to the house-elf still cowering in the corner and said, "Ruskle, please leave at once. And do not return until I call for you."

"Y-Yes, Young Master."

_Pop_!

The moment they heard the sound, Draco and Hermione moved over to the living area where they fell over the back of the couch. It was not until they heard a very distinct 'hoot' that they remembered they were not alone.

Hermione and Draco both stopped and turned slowly to look at the very alert owl now perched on the adjacent armchair.

Draco looked back to Hermione, shrugged his shoulders and said, "Keep going?"

"Keep going," she said, pulling his face back towards hers, both of them ignoring the owl that continued to hoot beside them.

XXX

After writing a quick letter to Ron explaining how he must have been mistaken about the house-elf, and another quick letter to Sophie telling her how uneventful their week had been, Hermione and Draco mounted their brooms and headed for Minsk. When they got there it was a bit late so they decided to stay the night at the local inn and head into the mountains the following morning.

They spent the majority of the night at the local pub where Hermione kept eyeing the man with dark shadows under his eyes in the corner.

"Stop staring at the vampire, 'Mione. You want to get us bloody killed? And, for once, I mean 'bloody' in the utmost literal sense."

"I wonder if that's the same vampire Hagrid got into a disagreement with …"

"Who _bloody_ cares? And, I swear, I'm not intentionally being ironic."

"Do you think I should ask him?"

"No!"

"I'm going to ask him," she said, moving out of her seat.

Draco reached out and pulled her back. "Have you gone mad? You can't approach a bloody vampire like that." Draco paused and then added, "I really need to expand my vocabulary."

Hermione rolled her eyes, pulled out of his clutches, and walked over to the vampire in the corner. "Excuse me, Sir. Would you mind if I asked you something terribly inappropriate?"

Draco grunted before getting up from his seat and joining her at the vampires table.

Hermione took the vampires silence as a sign to go on. Draco interpreted it differently. "Did you happen to have an altercation with a rather large man in this very pub back in the summer of 1995?" Draco chuckled. It was cute how she actually thought vampires had any concept of time. "He's about twice the size of a normal man and three times as broad. He would have been with a woman just as large –"

"Rubeus Hagrid. Yes, I recall," said the vampire.

Hermione beamed at the vampire before taking a seat at his table. "That is absolutely wonderful. I had a feeling when I saw you. My name is Hermione Granger," she said holding out her hand, "and this is Draco Malfoy."

The vampire took her hand, gave it a suave kiss and said, "Caedis."

Hermione blushed while giving the shameful giggle of a schoolgirl. "May we buy you a drink, Caedis?"

"Only if it is thick and red and straight from the veins of a virgin." They all laughed … awkwardly.

"No virgins here," said Draco, even more awkwardly.

The vampire looked up at him with hollow eyes. "Scotch neat. And make it a good year. Maybe …1979," he said, glancing sideways at Hermione.

"I'll vouch for that year," she said naively. "I was born in 1979."

"You don't say," said Caedis, leaning in closer to her.

Draco didn't head to the bar to order until Hermione started nudging him. He finally went but he did it reluctantly, keeping one eye on her the entire time. He didn't know much Latin, but he knew enough not to trust anyone named 'Caedis', _especially_ a vampire.

When he got back to the table, Caedis was in the middle of telling Hermione just what happened between him and Hagrid six years earlier. As the story went, the confrontation began when Caedis made a move on Madam Maxime. "I have always had a thing for tall women," he said smiling widely, Draco catching a glint of one of his razor-sharp teeth.

It wasn't until Hagrid caught him buying her a drink that things really got ugly.

"And trust me when I say, a bar brawl between a jealous half-giant and an overzealous vampire can never end pretty," said a passing barmaid with a wink.

Caedis frowned at her. "Yes, well, after our 'brawl' Rubeus and I got to talking and we made amends. Still keep in touch from time to time."

"I am so glad to have finally heard this story. Hagrid mentioned it in passing and I'd always wondered what sort of disagreement he'd had. I'd always worried it was something a bit more extreme than a feud over a girl."

Both Hermione and Caedis laughed while Draco kept his eye on the peculiar vampire. He didn't trust him one bit.

"So what brings the two of you to Minsk?" he asked taking a sip of his drink, a 1991 scotch Draco had purposely ordered out of spite. He didn't know why he'd chosen 1991; it had just come to him. But then he looked at Hermione and remembered that 1991 was the year they'd met. Their first year at Hogwarts. Oh crap, he had it bad.

"Just taking in the sights," said Hermione without missing a beat. "We're going for a hike in the mountains tomorrow."

"Make sure you do not hike too far in," said Caedis. "You do not want to run into any giants. The few that remain have been a little bitter towards wizards and witches since the war."

"So there _are_ still giants up there?" asked Draco.

"Oh yes. But their numbers have dropped significantly. I am unsure how many there are exactly, but I would say there are around twenty or so."

The three of them talked for another hour or so – mainly Hermione and Caedis since Draco had little to no interest in associating with a vampire – before Hermione and Draco said goodnight and headed for bed. Caedis, of course, planned to stay up a while longer. Their night was his day, after all.

The next morning Hermione and Draco woke up with the sun so they could get an early start. But really it was because Draco wanted to put as much distance between Hermione and the vampire as possible. But even distance was not enough to keep Hermione from talking about him.

"And did you know he participated in the centaur and vampire war of 1852?"

"Yes Hermione. I _was_ there."

"I mean, can you imagine living for that long? And by that point he had already been alive for _one-hundred_ years! I don't even know what I would do with all that time. Though, of course, I would spend a good portion of it in the Hogwarts library learning all I could from the books there. But then what would I do once I finished?"

"Read all the books in another library -"

"Maybe I would do what Caedis did and spend some time traveling the world. You know, where I actually have time to enjoy the places I visit. Then I can find the city I feel the most at home in, like him and Minsk, and live out the rest of my days there. Oh, that sounds lovely. Where would you want to live for eternity?"

"I don't know. Probably someplace like –"

Hermione giggled. "Oh, that reminds me of something Caedis said. Apparently, he and this talking muskrat went to the –"

"Oh, will you _shut up_ already?"

Hermione stopped in her tracks and glared at Draco's back until he stopped and turned around to look at her. "_Excuse_ me?" she asked, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"You heard me," he said, refusing to apologize for his sharp-tongue. "I'm sick of hearing you go on about that bloody – I mean _damn_ vampire." Draco knew right away that 'damn' wasn't any better. There had to be a less ironic word to call that _thing_.

"I don't know _what_ you are talking about."

"What do you mean you don't know? You've had your bloody nose on his arse since the moment we met him! He's a _vampire_, Hermione. They are _never_ to be trusted. For someone so smart you can really be dumb sometimes."

Hermione was just about to open her mouth to object when she stopped. Staring into Draco's gray eyes - which she now saw as more of a shimmery silver– Hermione began to smile. "Oh. My. Merlin. You're jealous!"

"What?" said Draco, raising an inquisitive eyebrow. "That's preposterous."

Hermione shook her head. "No it's not. You totally and completely are."

"Am not!"

"Are to! I never thought I'd see the day when Pureblood Draco Malfoy was jealous over a Mudblood -"

"Don't call yourself that!" shouted Draco, jumping into Hermione's face. "_Never_ call yourself that again!" He grabbed her arm with the scar and began to stroke it with his thumb.

Hermione looked down at his hand holding onto her arm so affectionately and smiled. She then put one hand on his cheek, leaned up and kissed him. When she pulled away, she looked deep into his silver eyes and said, "Alright, you win. I won't say it again."

"Good," he said, leaning his forehead against hers.

Hermione closed her eyes and breathed him in for a moment. When he finally pulled away Hermione looked up at him, gave a playful smile and said, "But you _are _jealous." Draco opened his mouth to protest, but Hermione stopped him by putting one finger on his lips. "Don't worry. You don't have to admit it. Just know that you have nothing to worry about. I mean, the man is two-hundred and fifty years old, and we have _completely_ different diets. I don't think I could _ever_ get on board with the whole blood thing."

Draco chuckled before leaning back down and kissing her. When he pulled away he moved his lips over to her ear and whispered, "I'm not jealous."

"Of course you're not." Draco released her arm and turned to continue walking on the path. Hermione smiled after him and when he was about ten feet in front of her she whispered, "But you are."

"I heard that."

Hermione laughed before running after him and slipping her hand into his. The two of them continued on their way, neither of them flinching as they walked hand-in-hand through the winding mountain paths.


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: And now may I present to you the action packed second half of the last chapter! I really enjoyed writing this part and I hope you enjoy it to!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Hermione and Draco traveled for the entire day by foot, scouting out the area. With the chance of giants being around they decided against flying on their brooms. They also decided against splitting up for that very same reason, so there was a good chance this mission would take them several days to complete.

During lunchtime Hermione used her wand to make a map of the area, designing it so it would automatically mark off where they had been after they explored it. She also used it to show them the five greatest peaks in the mountains and the most efficient ways to get there. Draco questioned the maps accuracy, but Hermione assured him of its quality.

"I guess I should never question something _you_ created," he said, sounding a bit sarcastic even though he knew it was a true statement. Really the tone just came naturally.

Hermione rolled her eyes before guiding them along the quickest route to the first peak. They only got as far as searching that peak and one other before it started to get dark. The two setup camp at the foot of it and spent the evening discussing strategy over Ruskle's home-cooked dinner.

Hermione and Draco had barely climbed into bed when they heard a rustling outside. They thought nothing of it at first, but then it sounded like something brushed right up against their tent. Draco got out of bed and went to investigate. He made sure to hold his wand high out in front of him.

The moment he stepped outside something grabbed him and pushed him back in. Hermione reacted immediately by jumping out of bed and casting the Jelly Legs Jinx on Draco's attacker. A large, dark, yet pale, man fell forward, taking Draco with him.

A second later two more men were through the entrance and headed for Hermione. She was able to hit one of them with the Freezing Charm but failed to hit the other with the Impediment Jinx.

Draco tried to get up to help her but the man she had cast Jelly Legs on kept pulling him back down. Eventually Draco was able to cast the Jelly Arms Jinx on him, rendering him completely immobile. Of course, that didn't stop the man from trying to bite Draco, giving him the perfect view of two razor-sharp teeth.

"Vampires. Hermione, they're all vampires – Ah!"

Someone new came behind Draco and whacked him across the head with an object he could not make out. He fell to his knees and tried to focus his eyes before being whacked again. The last thing he heard before blacking out was the sound of Hermione's screams.

"_Expelliarmus_!" shouted another man who had come in, taking Hermione's wand from her hand and giving the vampire who had been trying to reach her a chance to strike. He tackled her but Hermione was not one to be taken lightly. She kicked and punched and clawed as much as she could but, eventually, strength won and her hands were bound behind her back.

The caster reversed the Jelly Legs and Jelly Arms Jinx's from the one vampire and the Freezing Charm from the other. When the Jelly Vampire reached down to pick up an unconscious Draco the caster said, "Leave him. That is Lucius Malfoy's son. He is not to be touched, unless you want an early pass to a more eternal grave."

Jelly Vampire did not try to pick him up again, but that did not stop him from kicking Draco once in the side. The caster instructed the vampire still clutching the giant branch he had found outside to keep an eye on the unconscious wizard. If he made any sudden movements he was to whack him again.

The caster held the exit open for them while the remaining three vampires and the bound Hermione walked through. On her way out he smiled at her, revealing his own pointed teeth. Hermione gasped. He was also a vampire. She had heard of vampire's who carried the magic gene before, but none of them were considered wizards. Yet, somehow, this one had a wand and everything.

Hermione did not stop struggling the entire time. Eventually the largest of the vampires – Jelly Vampire – picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. She continued to kick but it didn't bother him. In fact, he seemed to enjoy it.

They finally stopped at the very top of the peak. Jelly Vampire put her down in the center of a large rock circle. Caedis was now standing directly in front of her. "Hermione. What a pleasure it is to see you again."

"Caedis? What the _hell_ is going on?" she asked, more surprised to see him than she should have been.

"Why, you've been chosen, my dear," he answered, beaming at her.

"Ch-chosen? For what?" Hermione gulped. She was afraid she already knew the answer.

"Why, to become one of us, Hermione. Why are you frowning like that? You should feel honored. After all, it is every young girls dream to become a vampire."

"Not mine!" she shouted quickly. "Who would ever want to be a living corpse that feeds off the blood of helpless victims? It's sick and wrong!" Hermione looked around at all of their scowling faces. "I mean … I'm sure it's perfectly lovely for all of you, but I'm afraid it's just not for me. So, Caedis, thank you for the offer but I'm afraid I must decline."

Caedis frowned at her. "I am afraid declining is not an option, my dear. You see, we need you to become one of us. Vampires are not always shined in the brightest of lights in the wizarding world."

"That's putting it mildly," laughed Jelly Vampire, who had an unexpectedly high voice. Hermione had pictured him as more of a baritone because of his large stature. Like Phillip. But, in reality, he sounded more like Sophie. Even in this grim situation she could not help but laugh. Jelly Vampire shot her a sharp look.

"Yes, thank you for your input, Mezmar. Even though no one asked for it." Jelly Vampire shut up immediately. "As I was saying, Hermione, we need a few well-known faces to help raise our status in the wizarding world, and who better than Harry Potter's right-hand man. Or woman."

"Have you gone mad? Changing me into a vampire won't please the wizarding world, it will infuriate them! Especially when they find out you changed me against my will!"

"You say that now, but once you become one of us I am positive you will be singing a different tune. Everyone always does. Just look at Vincent over there," said Caedis, pointing to the caster, who smiled.

"Yes. I was reluctant at first, just like you, but once I became one of them I knew I had been changed for the better. I was only a mediocre wizard, but being a wizard vampire makes me extraordinary. You can be extraordinary too."

Hermione gave Vincent the fiercest of scowls. "How dare you compare me with you! I am _not_ mediocre! I was the best in my class _and_ helped Harry defeat You-Know-Who himself! I'm already extraordinary!" Hermione hated to sound arrogant, but she was trying to prove a point. If there was ever a time in her life to be vain this was it.

"And think of how even more extraordinary you will be once you are one of us!" said Caedis with stars in his eyes. "Gentlemen, prepare the ritual."

Hermione jumped as Vincent cast a spell, setting the rock circle ablaze around them. For the first time since they had abducted her, Hermione started to shake. She didn't want to become a vampire. How could she drink human blood when she couldn't even eat Canard à la Rouennaise? She really wished Draco were here. He'd know what to do.

XXX

Draco awoke to the sound of a man singing. He slowly opened one eye just enough to make out the silhouette of one of the vampires who'd attacked them pacing around the room, fiddling with a large branch while he made up his own words to a tune Draco could have sworn sounded exactly like _Weasley is Our King_. Even in this moment he couldn't help but smile to himself satisfactorily. Nearly six years later and his song was _still_ catching.

Draco could just make out his wand in the vampires pocket. As soon as he began to walk over towards the kitchen, Draco called for Ruskle under his breath. He knew it was wrong to bring the house-elf into his battle, but right now all he cared about was finding Hermione. Lucky for him, Ruskle was smart and apparated just out of view of the vampire.

Hearing the '_Pop_', the vampire turned and called out, "Who's there?"

Ruskle ducked behind the couch and sneaked around the other side while the vampire took a look around. When he didn't find anything he started to head back towards the kitchen but was surprised to see a house-elf standing in his way. Ruskle used his magic to knock the vampire over, and Draco jumped up and grabbed his wand.

"_Immobulus_!"

The vampire froze and fell backwards

"Ruskle, find Hermione!" ordered Draco. The house-elf nodded before disapparating.

While he was gone Draco used a quick healing spell on his head. When it was done he cast a few jinxes on the vampire - just in case his spell wore off - and headed outside. He noticed the flames burning at the top of the peak immediately.

_Pop_!

"Your mistress is in the flames, Young Master! You must hurry to her!"

He didn't have to tell Draco twice. "Head down to Minsk and let some wizards know what is happening up here. And make sure to tell them the attackers are vampires."

Ruskle's already large eyes grew even wider. "Th-that was a v-vampire, Sir?"

"Yes. Now go!"

The elf nodded and disapparated. As soon as he was gone Draco apparated to the top of the peak. If Draco had taken a moment to think with his head he would have ducked behind a rock and formulated a plan, but Draco was thinking with his heart and all he wanted was to get Hermione out of here safely.

"_Immobulus_!" he shouted at the vampire with the wand first.

He hit one more with the Freezing Charm before two others were upon him. He wrestled with them, not worrying about the fire until he heard Hermione call his name. He looked up to see her bound and held by the neck by none other than Caedis.

"I should have known," he said, hitting both vampires with the Freezing Charm. When he stopped to catch his breath he took a good look around the area. Hidden in the shadows were what could have been dozens of vampires. There was no way of knowing for sure. "Bloody hell." This time he didn't even care about the irony. He knew he was screwed.

"Glad you could join us, Draco," said Caedis with a smug look on his face. "You are just in time to see your girlfriend here become one of us."

"He is _absolutely_ insane, Draco. He thinks turning me will up the vampire's status in the wizarding world. It's madness!"

"_You_? A Muggle-born?" asked Draco, slightly offended they had chosen her over him. "That _is_ insane."

"I'll ignore your snide remark now, but you better believe I'm going to bring it back up later!"

"Oh, _come on_, Hermione. I didn't mean it as an insult. All I'm saying is that Purebloods have a more … _solid_ place in the wizarding world. Heroes come and go, but Purebloods are forever."

"And it's that same chauvinistic attitude that had me hating you for so many years. When will you just admit that Muggle-born's can be as influential as Purebloods? Sometimes even more so."

"Uh, when it's true. Duh."

"As I recall, I was better than you in _every_ subject in school. How do you explain that?"

"Sheer dumb luck. You know, you're really not helping your case here, 'Mione. You might want to tone down your superiority complex."

"SUPERIORITY COMPLEX MY ARSE!"

"If the two of you don't mind, we have a ritual to perform," said Caedis, tightening his grip on Hermione's throat. "Mezmar," he said motioning to Jelly Vampire. "Detain him."

"With pleasure," said the vampire, showing off his pointed teeth.

Mezmar lunged for Draco right when Caedis started reciting some strange chant in Latin. As he did so the fire began to rise. All of the other vampires shouted their praises, half to the ritual and half to Mezmar, who had Draco on the ground and was currently trying to yank his wand out of his hand. But Draco was determined to hold onto it. He couldn't let Hermione down.

The ground started to shake. Everyone froze, even Caedis. Draco could see the small rocks on the ground bouncing as dozens of thundering bangs headed their way. And then, climbing over the top of the peak was a giant - slightly small by their standards. He had green hair and a blank look as he stared into the center of the flaming circle. Hermione stared back at him curiously.

"Grawp?" she asked, unsure if it was him since she had a hard time distinguishing between giants.

"Hermy?"

Draco chuckled. "_Hermy_." Hermione shot him a sharp look. He immediately shut his mouth.

"Yes Grawp. It's me. Hagrid's friend."

"Hagger?" His face lit up. "Hermy! Where's Hagger?"

"He's not here, Grawp. But I need your hel –"

Caedis put his free hand over her mouth. "I would keep quiet if I were you." She tried to bite him, but he just responded by nibbling her right back. "There will be plenty of time for that later."

Grawp stared at Hermione with his mouth agape. "Hermy. Gurg," he said, pointing to himself. "Friends?"

Hermione gave the faintest of nods and Grawp disappeared.

"Good girl," said Caedis, releasing her mouth. "You told him we were friends."

Hermione spit to get the taste of Caedis out of her mouth. Then she looked at him, smiled and said, "He wasn't talking about you when he said friends."

Caedis didn't get a chance to respond before they all heard someone shout, "GOOOOO!"

Hermione, Draco, and every last vampire turned to see at least twenty giants running at them, making the entire peak shake like it was experiencing the greatest of earthquakes. Draco took this moment of distraction to push Mezmar off of him and hit him with a Freezing Charm. Then he hit him with Jelly Legs again, just for fun.

Draco ran into the battle, hitting the vampires with every jinx in the book. At one point he tripped over the first vampire he had hit and noticed a familiar wand sticking out of his pocket. He grabbed it and extinguished the flames in front of him, entering the circle. Caedis was still mumbling his chant while holding onto Hermione's throat.

Marching forward, Draco cast a spell to undo Hermione's binds. The moment she was free she pushed Caedis off of her, kicking him where the sun didn't shine, even when he was capable of going into it.

She turned just as Draco tossed her wand to her, catching it with one hand. She tried to turn it on Caedis but he was too swift. The vampire had her back in his clutches and tilted her head back. "I'm going to enjoy this," he said, opening his mouth and getting ready to puncture her throat with his teeth.

Draco tried to run for her but other vampires kept jumping his way. He couldn't get there and Caedis was using Hermione as a human shield. There was no way to hit him with his wand without hitting her. And he was going in for the bite.

But Draco wouldn't let him have her. She was his and he was going to save her no matter the cost.

When he saw Caedis' teeth touch her vulnerable neck, Draco felt all of his strength drain from his body as his heart fell heavy. He fell forward and shouted, "TAKE ME!" with everything he had.

Caedis froze. His mouth still open, he turned his eyes to Draco, who took this moment to fill the gap between them.

"Trust me, you don't want her, you want me!"

"Draco, no!"

"My family is one of the oldest and most influential in the wizarding world, and I will willingly tell everyone I _chose_ to become a vampire!"

"Stop! I won't let you do this!"

"Let her go and I will do anything you say!"

"Anything?" asked Caedis, finally loosening his grip on Hermione's neck.

"Anything," repeated Draco. "Do we have a deal?" he asked, holding out his hand.

Caedis looked down at his hand and then at Hermione. Keeping his eyes on her, he grabbed Draco's hand and shook it. The weight in Draco's heart immediately lifted.

"A deal is a deal. As promised, I will let her go."

Draco reached out to grab Hermione, but before he could Caedis seized her arm and whipped her over the side of the peak.

"NO!" shouted Draco. "_Wingardium Leviosa_!" He held his wand out towards her just as she disappeared from sight. "HERMIONE!"

He tried to run to the spot she had gone over at, but Caedis grabbed him and held his arms behind his back, putting his other firm hand on Draco's throat. "Now boy. Time to uphold your end of the bargain."

Caedis pulled Draco's head back by the hair and readied himself to bite his neck, but right when he was about to a cold shiver ran through him. The flaming circle diminished as all happiness was sucked away from his inner core.

They all looked up towards the sky, just in time to see a dark cape, slightly denser than the sky, seep down on them. The last thing Caedis ever saw was a scabbed and rotting hand reaching out for him. After that there was nothing left inside of him but his own hollow mind.

XXX

Hermione struggled to reach the edge of the cliff as she hung upside down in midair. Draco's Levitation Charm had only managed to hit her foot, but she was alive, and she was grateful for that.

Once she had a firm hold on the side of the cliff, Hermione used her wand to reverse the spell. Her foot fell fast and hard, and she had to stop herself from falling right back down again. Looking back up, Hermione tried to figure out how she was going to climb back to the top. The peak sort of curved outwards, so there was no good way to climb up the side.

Then she remembered the suction cup charm she and Sophie had used in the mountains near Hogwarts. She tried to cast it on herself now, but that required her to take one hand off the side of the cliff and when she attempted it she almost fell again.

"No, no, no!" she shouted at the rocks in front of her. "Why? Why did you have to do that you stupid, stupid fool?"

Hermione cried as she realized it was hopeless. She would never get up there to save Draco in time, and Grawp didn't even know to try and protect him.

"Draco … please, just hold on a little longer," she sobbed.

Just when she was about to try and use her wand again, Hermione heard a cawing sound behind her. She turned as best she could and saw a beautiful red and gold bird flying towards her.

"The phoenix."

The bird stopped just above her head and waited for her to grab onto its tail. Hermione did just that and the phoenix flew her to the top of the peak.

Hermione jumped off just in time to see a horde of Dementor's giving anyone they could find the Dementor's Kiss. She located Draco, who was still in the center of the circle. He had fallen to the ground and was backing away as one of the Dementor's reached out for him. It grabbed onto his shirt and pulled him forward, beginning to suck the soul right out of him.

"NO!" shouted Hermione running for him, her wand held high. "_Expecto Patronum_!"

A bright-white, translucent otter shot out of Hermione's wand and headed straight for the Dementor holding Draco. Her Corporeal Patronus was so strong that all of the Dementor's cringed at its light and took off into the air. But Hermione only cared about one.

She ran to where Draco still lay on the ground and cradled his head in her lap, all the while her otter floating around them. "Draco," she called, shaking his still body. "Draco, please be alright!"

Hermione cried while the wizard she no longer hated did not move. She used one hand to stroke his hair while the other reached for his hand. She held onto it, sobbing uncontrollably, until it started to hold hers back. Hermione froze.

"Draco?" she asked as his eyelashes began to flutter.

"H-Hermione," he said, still a little muddled. "Didn't you fall over the cliff?"

"Yes,' she laughed, squeezing him tightly against her. "Yes, I did. But your Levitation Charm hit my foot and I was stuck hanging upside down."

"I tried to go after you, but that bloody vampire wouldn't let me," he said finally opening his eyes. "Is that an otter?"

Hermione looked up to see her Patronus hovering above her head. "Yes. He's keeping the Dementor's away."

"I think they got Caedis," he said, sitting up a little. "I didn't know vampires could get the Dementor's Kiss, but I'm glad they can. If anyone deserves it that bastard did."

Hermione wanted to disagree but, in this moment, she couldn't. Caedis tried to take Draco from her and, right now, she didn't know what she would ever do without him

Unable to hold back any longer, Hermione leaned down and kissed him in a way she never had before. It was like she never wanted to let him go. When they pulled away Draco smiled at her and asked, "What was that for?"

"For saving my life," she said, kissing him again.

Draco laughed. "Aren't you the one who saved mine?"

"Only _after_ you saved mine twice. If you hadn't stopped him from making me a vampire _and_ cast the Levitation Charm on my foot, I couldn't have stopped the Dementor's from making you a vegetable."

"A win-win," he said.

Just then, the beautiful red and gold bird landed beside them. Draco stared at it in awe. He had never seen a phoenix this close before. The bird leaned forward and pecked at his cheek.

Hermione laughed. "I think she likes you." Looking down at her tail feathers, Hermione pointed and asked, "May I?" The phoenix looked at Draco and bowed its head. "I think it wants you," smiled Hermione.

Draco smiled back at her before leaning down and plucking a golden feather from the phoenix's tail. The bird pecked him on the cheek one last time before spreading its wings and flying into the air.

"Hermy! Hermy!" Hermione and Draco both looked to see Grawp hammering toward them. "Hermy okay! Grawp so happy!"

"Yes, Hermy happy too, Grawp. And this is Draco," she said, motioning to the blonde wizard beside her. "He's also happy."

Grawp smiled before plopping down beside them. "Mess," he said.

Hermione looked around. "Yes it is."

The only vampires left on the peak were either dead or victims of the Dementor's Kiss. All of the others had fled. Only two giants had fallen, but it still seemed like two too many to Hermione. After all, this entire thing was her fault. If she hadn't gone up to Caedis in the pub this never would have happened.

"It's not your fault."

Hermione looked over to see Draco watching her. "How do you know what I'm thinking?"

"I just do," he said, feeling no need to give further explanation. "Whether you went up to him or not, Caedis saw you in the pub. I'm sure he made a decision the moment he did."

"But what if he didn't?"

"He did, Hermione. This is not your fault. It's his. Never forget that."

Hermione sighed. Draco reached out and grabbed her hand. Noticing this, Grawp reached out and grabbed the other. "Ow! A little looser, please, Grawp."

"Sorry Hermy."

The three of them sat there holding hands until Ruskle arrived with reinforcements on brooms ten minutes later. _This_ was not going to be easy to explain.

17


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Sometimes I have a lot to say in these things, and other times I can't think of anything …**

**I like this chapter, but I'm really excited about where they go in the next one! Something for you all to contemplate and look forward to ;-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

For several hours Hermione and Draco had to tell and retell their story to the different officials that kept showing up. In the end six vampires and one giant had received the Dementor's Kiss – something no one had even thought possible. They took the vampires, including Caedis, to the closest hospital for the time being, but Grawp wanted to keep the giant with him. Hermione explained to him as simply as possible that the giant was not going to get better, but Grawp didn't care.

"Giants are family," he said, taking the lost giant's hand in his own. Several others grunted their approval.

Hermione smiled. As it turned out, Grawp being the Gurg was the greatest thing that could have ever happened to their species. Maybe now they had a chance of survival.

"Well, alright Grawp. But you have to promise to take really good care of him."

Grawp nodded very seriously before instructing two of his subordinates to pick up the kissed giant and carry him back to their home. Before following after them, Grawp said goodbye to Hermione and Draco, which consisted of one extremely tight group hug. "Bye Hermy! Bye Draky!" he shouted at them before skipping after the others.

"_Draky_? Now that just sounds silly," said Draco while Hermione looked at him and laughed.

By the end of it all Hermione and Draco were so exhausted, they didn't even notice when someone snapped several photos of them.

It was nearly sunrise by the time they got back to their tent to sleep. Mr. Ollivander's owl was waiting for them and Draco handed it the feather. As soon as it was gone the two of them collapsed onto the bed and clonked out.

When they awoke the day was already half over. The owl was back and holding a letter and a copy of the _Daily Prophet_ in its mouth. They both sat up in bed and Hermione took the letter while Draco took the paper. She read Mr. Ollivander's words aloud:

_Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Granger,_

_ It seems the two of you have had quite a night. I apologize for sending you on such a dangerous mission. Who knew so many vampires, giants, and Dementor's were living in those mountains. I have sent you a copy of the article about your experience, but we all know Rita Skeeter can be a bit of an embellisher, so I would appreciate a letter back explaining what really happened over there._

_Please take the rest of the day off to recuperate. I will send you your next mission tomorrow and, starting next week, I will be giving the two of you a more stable task._

_Rest well,_

_Ollivander_

Hermione dropped the letter and immediately yanked the _Daily Prophet_ out of Draco's hands. "Ah!" And there, on the front page staring back at her, was a photo of her and Draco as he put his arm around her shoulders, both of them looking extremely exhausted.

"Wait until you read the article," said Draco, far from laughing. How was he going to explain _this_ to his mother? "At least they didn't catch us holding hands. Or _worse_."

Barely hearing him, Hermione moved down to the article and read:

_Young lovers Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger were brutally attacked when caught in the heart of a brewing battle between a group of renegade vampires and the remnants of the giant community, writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent. The couple was on holiday in Minsk when they decided to go for a casual stroll in the mountains. It was here that things turned deadly._

_Granger, a stunning Muggle-born beauty and close personal friend of Harry Potter, was abducted by the leader of the vampires and used as bait to lure the giants out of hiding. A vicious battle soon ensued. If it were not for the heroic efforts of Malfoy, her roguishly handsome Pureblood boyfriend, Granger might have been lost in the midst of the roaring massacre._

"_Draco saved my life tonight," says Granger with stars in her eyes. "He truly is my hero."_

"I said no such thing!"

"Shh! Keep reading Mione. I want to hear more about how this _roguishly_ _handsome_ Pureblood is your hero."

Hermione rolled her eyes before reading on:

_Perhaps the biggest shock of their night was not the horrid conflict between vampires and giants, but the sudden appearance of several Dementor's near its climax._

"_It is not uncommon for Dementor's to show up in the heat of battle like this," says Special Wizarding Agent, Dennis Dunnger. "Since the Dementor's release from their duties in Azkaban, several have gone rogue and only show up in the direst of situations. They figure everyone around is going to die anyway, why not consume their souls?"_

_In the end it was Granger's Corporeal Patronus that saved them all. It is a rare and powerful magic that only shines strong enough with the happiest of memories. Perhaps it was her love for her one and only Pureblood Prince that made Granger's Patronus so potent._

"_Honestly, I would be lost if it weren't for Hermione," said a googly-eyed Malfoy. "If she hadn't cast her Patronus that Dementor would have consumed my soul for sure."_

_If anything can be learned from this story it is this: Love truly can conquer all._

"What a load of rubbish!" said Hermione, throwing the paper to the floor. "I cannot believe people _actually_ read this nonsense. How the hell did Rita Skeeter even hear about this story? And _who_ took the bloody picture?"

"Worried that Weasley saw it, are you?"

"Horrified!" she said, jumping out of bed and throwing on some clean clothes. "I have to do damage control immediately!" Once she was changed she grabbed some Floo powder from her backpack, went over to the bed and gave Draco a kiss. "I'll be back later and we'll do something _relaxing_ with our time," she said with a wink. "Write to Mr. Ollivander while I'm gone, please."

And then she disapparated out of there. Draco, now left alone, fell back on the bed and let out a loud sigh. He couldn't believe he was actually sort of hurt by how she still wanted to keep him a secret from Weasley. It wasn't _that_ terrible of a secret. She could definitely do worse. Did this all really mean nothing to her?

"Ahhh!" shouted Draco, shaking his head about. "Stop thinking about her! Stop thinking about her!"

He jumped out of bed, changed, and darted for the exit. His mind was running a mile a minute and he needed time to think. He needed some fresh air.

XXX

In Minsk Hermione located the local Floo network in the back of the pub they had been in two nights prior, where she had met Caedis. How she loathed the memory.

Making sure she had complete privacy, Hermione threw some Floo powder into the flames, stuck her head in and said, "The Burrow." She was taking a shot in the dark at Ron's location, but it was as good as any place to start.

When the Burrow appeared, Hermione was not surprised to find their living room empty. She waited for a minute, and was completely overjoyed when she saw Ginny walk in with her mom at her heels, discussing wedding plans, as always.

"Mom, I don't want five-hundred doves at my wedding. I don't know why you'd even order such a thing. It is _so_ tacky."

"Well, forgive me for thinking you might want a wedding like the one your father and I had."

"_You_ had doves? How lame."

"That's it! I'm done! You can plan the rest of this wedding by yourself!" Mrs. Weasley stormed out of the room.

"Oh, come on, Mom! Don't be like that!" Ginny shouted, but Hermione noticed that she was in no rush to go after her.

"Ginny!" she called from the fire. Ginny looked around wildly. "Ginny!"

Finally catching a glimpse of the fire, Ginny rushed over and sat down in front of it. "Is that you, Hermione? I thought you weren't allowed this sort of communication for the summer?"

"Technically, I'm not, but this is important."

"Is this about that _lovely_ photo of you and your Pureblood Prince in the _Prophet_ this morning? Because, I have to be honest, you weren't looking your best."

"Well, it _was _taken at four in the morning. What do you expect?" Before Ginny could answer, she asked, "Is Ron around?"

Ginny shook her head. "No. He's at Auror training. It _is _the middle of the day, you know."

"Oh … right," said Hermione, afraid to admit that she had completely forgotten about Ron's life-altering decision.

"But you don't need to worry about it, anyway. We all know Rita Skeeter is full of rubbish. Harry and all of my family have been taking extra precautions to make sure Ron doesn't see the article. George grabbed all of the _Prophet's_ being sold in Diagon Alley, Harry and my dad disposed of all of the ones down at the Ministry, and Fleur and I grabbed everything in between."

"Oh," said Hermione, less relieved than she thought she'd be. "So you don't think Ron would understand that it was all just Rita Skeeter making up lies?"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Come on, Hermione. You know my brother better than anyone. While he might say it's all rubbish, we all know it still will have planted silly ideas in his head. He's so gullible he might even start to believe that _you_, of all people, would actually hookup with _Draco Malfoy_. Of all the absurd things in the world," laughed Ginny.

"Yes." Hermione chuckled awkwardly. "_Absurd_."

Ginny eyed her questionably. "Speaking of which, why _was_ his arm around you? The two of you aren't becoming friends, are you?"

"Well … yes. Yes, we are," said Hermione confidently. "Believe it or not he has saved my life on numerous occasions, last night being no exception."

"Were you really used as bait by vampires to lure out giants?" asked Ginny. "Sounds a bit farfetched to me."

"All lies," said Hermione. "I was actually taken by vampires who wanted to turn me into one of them. Then the giants came and saved the day. Hagrid's half-brother, Grawp, is their Gurg now."

"So there really _was_ a battle between vampires and giants?"

"Yes. I suppose there was."

"And the Dementors? Were they there too?"

"They did show up, yes. But I used my Patronus to hoard them off."

"And you and Malfoy, totally lovers, right?"

Hermione paused, narrowed her eyes at the red-headed girl, and said, "I'm not falling for that, Ginny. Draco and I are friends. That's all you need to know. Honestly, who are you going to believe, me or Rita Skeeter?"

"I'd like to say you, but it seems like Rita's account of your little adventure wasn't as farfetched as I'd initially thought."

"It was still pretty farfetched."

"The facts were jumbled a bit but the points were all still there. There was a battle between vampires and giants, you and Malfoy were in the middle of it, Dementor's appeared. That's all accurate, right?"

"Well, when you say it like that."

"Are you really not going to tell me what's going on between the two of you?"

"_Nothing's_ going on, Ginny. We've just become friends. That's all," said Hermione, hating how she constantly had to defend herself. "And there's nothing wrong with that. He's changed _a lot_ since the war. I don't expect you to understand. Your families have never gotten along."

"I couldn't care less about the feud between his father and mine. That's their business. But, be honest, Hermione. He couldn't have changed _that _much. People don't just change."

Hermione thought about this. "Alright, if I'm being honest then I'll admit that his personality hasn't changed. He's as arrogant and pig-headed as ever. But his ideals have changed, and so has his outlook on life. We've spent time with Muggles on several different occasions, he has used their technology, and he wouldn't dare call me Mudblood. See? Changes."

"_Minor_ changes. Let's not forget that this is the same wizard who was constantly messing with Harry and Ron, talked down to you, cursed at you, jinxed you, tried to get Hagrid fired, let Death Eaters into Hogwarts, tried to kill Professor Dumbledore, _watched_ while you were tortured. Need I go on?"

Hermione scowled at her. "No. No need. I haven't forgotten any of those things. I just believe in second chances."

Ginny frowned, but still said, "Alright, Hermione. I trust your judgment. Just … don't do anything you'll regret. Okay?"

Hermione nodded, even though she had a feeling it was already too late for that. "I won't. Don't worry about me, Ginny. I'm fine." She really wasn't. "I have to go. Probably best not to tell Ron I was here."

"Got it," said Ginny. "I miss you, Hermione. Planning this wedding isn't the same without you." Leaning in closer to the fire, Ginny whispered, "My mom is driving me absolutely insane. Please, please, please hurry back. I need someone to play mediator, and Fleur just isn't cutout for the job."

Hermione laughed. "I would imagine not. Fleur and your mom are both so -"

"Hotheaded," finished Ginny.

Both girls laughed before one last goodbye. Hermione pulled her head out of the fire and remained on her knees, staring into the green flames as they slowly began to diminish. She wished she could forget about everything Draco had done, but it wasn't as easy as it sounded. He'd made a lot of wrong choices in life.

Hermione walked around town for a bit before apparating back to the tent. When she got there Draco was nowhere to be found, but Mr. Ollivander's owl was still there. She sighed and made herself some tea before sitting down with a clean piece of parchment and writing the true story to their boss.

Right when she took the owl outside and sent it on its way, it began to rain. While she normally liked summer storms, she found herself extremely worried about Draco and his whereabouts. Hopefully, he would come back soon.

He didn't. Several hours passed before he showed up completely soaked. Hermione - who had been sitting on the couch and staring at the entrance, biting her nails until they were raw and bleeding - leapt off of the couch and into his arms.

"Where have you been? It's raining cats and dogs out there! _Accio towel_!" As soon as a towel was in her hands she started drying him off. "If you get sick I don't know what we'll do!"

"Calm down, Mione. It's just a little water," he said, pulling her and the towel off of him. "It's not like a Muggle cold can do anything to me."

"But they're all different. It's hard to heal them. Now, you go and get changed while I make you some tea."

Hermione scurried off to the kitchen while Draco looked after her, laughing. He didn't move until she looked over and shot him a sharp look. He immediately went over to his backpack and pulled out some clean clothes.

The moment he was changed Hermione was in front of him, shoving a cup of tea into his hands and pushing him back onto the couch. While he sipped it she retrieved her towel and continued to dry his hair.

"Hermione, seriously, I'm fine. There's no need to do all this," he said, even though he was secretly enjoying it. He had never had a girl fawn over him this much before. Well, other than his mother. And Pansy probably would have if given the opportunity.

"Where were you?" asked Hermione, finally sitting down and relaxing a bit. "You shouldn't be walking through these mountains alone. Not just because of the weather, but because of the Dementor's and the vampires. Both are still around, you know."

"I wasn't alone," said Draco, taking another sip of his tea. "I tried to be but there are search parties everywhere. They think most of the vampires have fled but they suspect the Dementor's are hiding somewhere."

"And you were searching with them? That's what took so long?" she asked, moving a strand of wet hair out of his eyes.

"Hell no I wasn't! I had enough action last night, why would I go looking for trouble?" he laughed. "Actually, while trying to get away from everyone else I ended up in the giants' community. Grawp saw me and immediately took me in. He wanted to show me his kingdom. Not much of one if you ask me."

"Giants are simple creatures," defended Hermione.

"Yeah, well, they had that giant who was given the Dementor's Kiss in the center of their 'kingdom' all decorated in flowers and such. Grawp made the giants mate hold his hand while they all did this weird dance, some ritual to their Gods or something, I'm not really sure since I don't understand half the things he tells me. Then it started to rain. I think they did a rain dance by accident." He laughed.

Hermione laughed with him. "Whoops."

"They still seemed pretty happy about it, though. Then the real party began. I considered leaving, but how many wizards can actually say they've been to a giant's party?"

"You're probably the only one," smiled Hermione.

"Exactly! So I stayed. Didn't mean to worry you," he said, nudging her shoulder.

"I wasn't worried!" Even Hermione heard the ridiculousness in her words, and they both laughed.

"Did you write to Mr. Ollivander already?" asked Draco. "Sorry I didn't do it earlier, but I was planning on being back before you."

"Yes, I did it," said Hermione, putting her head on his shoulder while he wrapped his arm around her. "You owe me."

"So did Weasel see the article?"

Hermione shook her head. "No. Harry and his family made sure he didn't. None of them believe it."

Draco frowned. He really had been hoping the Weasley would have seen it and broken up with her over it. But, even if he had, it was doubtful he would have dumped her because of it. Hermione was the catch. Everyone knew that. Even Weasel.

"I think Ginny suspects something is going on between us, though. I'm a horrible liar."

"Would she care?"

Hermione shrugged. "Maybe a little. She was all for our summer apart, but the Weasley's aren't exactly fans of the Malfoy's."

"It works both ways."

"Why is that?" asked Hermione, looking up at him. "You're both Purebloods and probably related somewhere down the line, so why so much hostility?"

Draco shuddered at the thought of him and Weasley ever being related to each other, but did his best to hide it from Hermione. The truth was he didn't really have an answer for her. Before the war he would have said it was because they were poor and blood traitors, but, looking at where his arm was right now, only one of those arguments still worked, and he would _never_ tell Hermione that the reason the Malfoy's didn't like the Weasley's was because they were poor. Only if he had a death wish.

"I don't know. The feud has been going on for years, before our fathers even. So if we are related it's very very distant. If any Malfoy ever married a Weasley I've never heard about it."

"Well, I know you're at least related through marriage, if not by blood."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"Sirius once told Harry that he and Mrs. Weasley were cousins through marriage. And he's your mother's cousin. So that makes him your cousin once removed, and so Ron's mom is your second cousin once removed -"

"Through marriage!" he corrected.

Hermione smiled. "Yes. Through marriage. So that makes Ron your second cousin twice removed. _Through_ marriage."

Draco did the math on his fingers, turned to Hermione and asked, "Is that right? I don't think it is."

Hermione shrugged. "Probably not, but it sounds legit. Either way you're both Purebloods, and Harry's father was Pureblood so chances are, all three of you are related somehow."

"Gross!"

Hermione sat up and put her hands on her hips. "Why? Why gross?"

"Just is."

"I need a more valid argument than that."

"I don't know," he said. "Why do you care?"

"Because!"

"Because why?"

"Because I want the two of you to be decent towards each other in the future!"

"Why?"

"Because!"

"Hermione! Stop playing this game and just tell me why!"

"Because …" Hermione paused, looked into his silver eyes, and said, "Because I don't want to lose you at the end of the summer."

Draco's mouth dropped. He didn't know what he'd been expecting her to say, but it wasn't that. "You … don't want to lose me?" he repeated, just to make sure he'd heard her correctly.

Hermione wiped a tear from her eye and said, "Yes. I don't want to lose you, but if you and Ron and Harry can't be civil towards one another then I know that that's exactly what's going to happen. Do you want to lose me?"

Without hesitation, Draco said, "No. I don't." But he already knew they weren't talking about losing each other in the same way. She wanted to stay friends, while he … wanted more.

"Okay, good," said Hermione, smiling again. "Just think about what I said, then. We still have time to figure this out, but at the end of the summer I'm going to tell Ron and Harry that they have to get along with you. Or, at least be polite. All of you will have to work on holding your sharp-tongues. Honestly, I don't know how I ended up with so many stubborn wizards in my life."

"Probably because you're so stubborn too," he laughed. She smacked his arm and he pulled her in for a kiss. When their lips parted, he looked into her amber eyes and asked, "Will you teach me how to conjure a Patronus?"

Hermione smiled. "Of course! If you weren't such a prick you could have joined the D.A. in school and learned then."

"Yeah, I still wouldn't join a group run by Potter."

Hermione frowned. "And that is exactly the attitude I don't want to hear."

Before their fight could progress, they both heard someone calling them from outside. "HERMY! DRAKY! GRAWP HERE!"

"Oh yeah," said Draco, jumping to his feet. "I forgot. When I told Grawp I needed to come back and check on you he insisted on coming along. But I apparated ahead of him."

He held his hand out and helped Hermione off of the couch. They went over to open the tent, but Grawp was already sticking his giant head inside. "Hermy!"

"Hello again, Grawp," she said patting his head. "Please don't come in. We'll come out."

While Draco helped Grawp move his head - which had gotten stuck - back outside, Hermione went into her backpack and pulled out an umbrella. Both she and Draco put on extra jumpers and coats before heading outside.

They huddled together on a rock while Grawp sat on the ground beside them. They all talked for a while, but once the rain died down Draco and Hermione took out their wands and practiced their Patronuses.

Grawp chased Hermione's otter around while she helped Draco work on his. He managed a non-corporeal one pretty quickly, but the corporeal Patronus was a bit more challenging.

"Just think of a happy memory," said Hermione, putting her hand on his and correcting his form.

Draco looked over at her before shouting, "_Expecto Patronum_!" A bright-white, translucent serpent shot out of his wand and immediately went over to her otter, snapping at it until it vanished.

"Uhh … I think yours still needs a little work."

"Do they normally attack other Patronuses like that?" asked Draco, watching his serpent slither around.

Hermione shook her head. "Never seen that before in my life."

"Huh," he said as Grawp tried to grab at his serpent, coming up empty handed every time. "Weird."

Hermione called hers forth again to see what would happen. Sure enough, Draco's serpent went after her otter. "It's so typical that yours is a snake," she laughed. "You should try to change it to something more regal."

"What? Like a lion? Never going to happen." They both laughed. Staring it his glowing serpent, Draco asked Hermione, "Can they change?"

Hermione nodded. "Yes, but not easily. It's normally only when there has been some sort of emotional upheaval in your life. Which, strangely enough, is most often caused by love or marriage."

"That's not _that_ strange. Love and marriage can be very emotionally disturbing."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Sometimes you can be such a pessimist."

Draco winked before pulling her in and kissing her. As soon as he did his Patronus went crazy, wailing and thrashing about before ultimately vanishing. Both Draco and Hermione stared at where it had been in horror. Even Grawp looked a little frightened.

"Are you not happy when you kiss me, Draco?" asked Hermione, feeling very confused.

"Of course I am," he answered.

"But you're … torn, aren't you?"

Draco frowned, still staring at where his Patronus had been. "I suppose I must be. Otherwise it wouldn't do that."

"Maybe you should avoid using me as a happy memory for now. Try using a memory from your childhood."

Draco did just that before conjuring his Patronus again. This time, when Hermione set her otter free, his serpent did not attack it.

"That's what I thought," said Hermione, visibly disappointed. Her Patronus melted away as she continued to frown at his serpent.

"You're not mad, are you?" asked Draco as his Patronus vanished in similar fashion.

"No."

"Yes you are. You said it before, you're a horrible liar. What I don't understand is why you're mad. It's not like I'm doing this on purpose."

"It's not about being mad, Draco. I guess I'm just a little confused."

"Why's that?" he asked.

"You're not the only one who's torn, you know," she said, finally looking over at him. "I am too, but it was the memory of you and I together on the night we played twenty questions that helped me conjure such a powerful Patronus last night. And, if you noticed, my otter didn't go all crazy while I thought about it."

"But you don't understand. It's different for me."

"How?" asked Hermione. "How is it different?"

Draco sighed. He wanted to tell her that it was because he wasn't just torn about what others might think if they found out about them, he was torn about wanting more than what she was offering. But he couldn't tell her that. It would ruin everything they had created.

"I guess it isn't," was all he said.

While Hermione continued to frown, Draco pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her waist, nuzzling himself deep into her neck.

"I'll work on it, alright?"

Hermione nodded as she threw her arms around his neck, afraid to admit that every day she felt even more torn about her feelings for him. It wasn't just his friendship she feared losing. It was all of him. But if he couldn't even create a happy memory about her, how was this ever going to work?

The two of them stayed there hugging each other. Grawp was sitting a short distance away, watching them with a smile on his giant face. Catching both of their eyes he asked, "Love?"

Neither of them answered.

21


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Enjoy!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

For the next five days Hermione and Draco traveled and collected wood during the day, and worked on his Patronus at night. Every time he thought about Hermione while casting it, it would destroy her otter. And when he touched or kissed her while it was out - whether he thought about her to conjure it or not - it would thrash about savagely. They managed to get it to the point where they could hold hands without it acting up, but only when he thought about something else while conjuring it. Really, they had made very little progress.

Hermione's letter from Ron that week showed no signs that he had seen the article. He was still going on about the house-elf that attacked him. He thought Hermione should take it more seriously and ask Draco about it. It was really bothering him. She just wanted this business with Draco's letter to be done and over with. To satisfy Ron, she made Draco write a little blurb at the bottom of her reply back to him, explaining that his house-elf did_ not_ steal a letter from him.

_I really wish you would stop accusing my house-elf of pilfering. He is either at Malfoy Manor or with me at all times. He does not have a spare moment to go around stealing letters._

Hermione frowned down at his response. "You could have at least been nice about it."

"Well, what am I supposed to say? 'Sorry mate. Not _my _elf'." Draco rolled his eyes.

Even though she didn't like it, Hermione still sent the letter. She also wrote back to Sophie and Phillip, who had heard about the article in the _Daily Prophet_ but not seen it. She told them the entire story … and Draco made her throw something in at the end, asking Sophie if she had met anyone yet. He was still trying to prove the two of them were shagging.

"They're _not_ shagging, Malfoy."

"But they are," he sang, leaning over and kissing her cheek until she smiled.

It was not until the following day that Mr. Ollivander finally told them about the more 'stable task' he had promised.

_Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Granger,_

_ I told the two of you last week that I had something in mind a bit more stable for you to accomplish. Starting tomorrow, you will travel to the Forbidden Forest near Hogwarts and spend the week collecting various items for me. I have written a list at the bottom of this letter of all the things you will be collecting, but I may be adding to it as the week progresses, possibly requiring you to spend even more time there. I have already written to Headmistress McGonagall and received permission for you to enter the forest. And don't worry, I am sure the two of you are more than capable of performing this task._

_Best of luck to you,_

_Ollivander_

Hermione looked down at the bottom of the letter and read off the list:

_Undead Root_

_Branch from the Whomping Willow_

_Bark from the Skeleton Tree (rumored)_

_Acromantula Venom_

_At least five different unicorn hairs (I've had my eye on a particularly large mare for quite some time)_

Draco gaped at her. "Oh, is _that_ all?"

"Yeah. That's it," said Hermione, staring wide-eyed at the parchment. "I suppose we should be happy he thinks so highly of us."

"I feel very little happiness right now."

Hermione put the letter down and sighed. "I know you don't like it, but I really think we should ask Hagrid for his help with this. He knows the forest better than anyone. Maybe he can teach us a few tricks about getting through it."

Draco looked at her and said, "Alright."

"I know you don't care for him, but it really is our best optio - wait. What?"

"I said alright, Hermione. You can stop selling me on it now."

"But … why?"

Draco shrugged. "I trust your judgment. If you think he can help us then why not give it a whirl? What's the worst that could happen, right?"

"I can think of a few things. It isn't called the Forbidden Forest for nothing. I've almost died in there on more than one occasion," she said. "As excited as I am to stay in one place for a while, I'm really not looking forward to going in there again."

"Don't worry," said Draco, leaning over and stroking her hair. "I'll protect you."

Hermione looked straight into his silver eyes and laughed. "What? Like how you protected Harry during detention our first year? As I recall, you ditched him at the first sign of danger."

"Hermione, you don't understand. There was a slithering cloaked thing sucking the blood out of a unicorn. Why would I have stayed?"

"Hmm, let me think about that … Oh yes! To make sure Harry didn't die!"

Draco smiled cunningly and said, "I was eleven. What do you expect from me? Besides, I care much more about protecting you than I ever did about protecting Potter."

Hermione thought about spitting out a witty comeback, but something else escaped her lips before she could. "Is that your sly way of saying you care about me?"

"No. I don't have to be sly about it," said Draco. "I should think it's pretty obvious by now that I do."

"Then say it."

"What?"

"I want to hear you say, 'Hermione, I care about you'." She crossed her arms and waited patiently.

Draco chuckled before clonking his forehead against hers and saying, "Hermione, I care about you."

Hermione smiled. "Good."

"Don't you want to say anything back?" he asked.

"Well, I think it's pretty obvious by now that I do," she mocked.

"Oh, shut it," he said, moving away from her.

Laughing, Hermione pulled him back, looked him straight in the eyes and said, "Draco, I care about you."

Draco smiled. "Good."

He leaned in and kissed her, gentle at first, then slightly more aggressive, making sure to bite her bottom lip as she passionately pulled at his hair. Before long he was on top of her with both of their shirts off. He was just about to remove her bra when she stopped him.

"Wait a second." Staring at a spot on the tent, Hermione pushed Draco off of her and ran over to it. When she didn't find anything, she started searching the canvas around the area.

"What are you doing?" he asked, very eager to get back to where they were.

"I thought I saw something," she said, still staring at the spotless fabric.

"What do you think you saw?" Deciding to move this along, Draco got up from the couch and walked over to her. He stood behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and stroking his hands against her bare stomach. How he longed to run his tongue across that perfect, porcelain skin.

"A beetle," she answered, barely responding to his touch.

"A beetle?" he repeated. She nodded. "Mione, we've done it in front of an owl. Why on earth do you care about a beetle?"

Hermione frowned at the empty canvas. "It's just that … well, Rita Skeeter …" she sighed. "I guess she just has me paranoid. You never know who might be watching."

"And you think what? That a beetle is going to report back to her that we're shagging? That's ridiculous," he laughed.

"You'd be surprised."

"Hermione," he said, turning her around. "Forget about this 'beetle' and come back over here." He moved her back towards the couch, both of them tumbling over the armrest. This time he successfully got her bra off without any interruptions, as well as all of their other clothing.

But, even during the midst of their passion, Hermione always kept one eye fixed on the side of the tent, making sure no beetle showed its face there. She knew better than to underestimate Rita Skeeter.

XXX

Several hours later, Hermione and Draco mounted their brooms and headed for Hogsmeade. When they got there it was already getting dark. Hermione wanted to get a room at the Three Broomsticks, but Draco quickly vetoed that idea.

"You heard Madam Rosmerta the last time we were here. She wants to see my face as little as possible."

"So are you actually suggesting we spend the entire week in our tent when there is a perfectly good inn right there?" asked Hermione.

"Yes," said Draco, without hesitation. "Maybe we can convince her to let me in for a butterbeer here and there, but I think asking for a room is a bit if a stretch."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Fine, but tomorrow we're going over there and giving her some of those Galleons you promised her. I refuse to treat the Three Broomsticks like the plague the entire time we're here."

"What's the plague?" he asked.

Hermione rolled her eyes again. "A very tragic Muggle epidemic. Honestly, it's like you Purebloods live under a rock or something."

Taking Draco by the hand, Hermione guided him through the town and to the cave where Sirius Black had hidden during the Triwizard Tournament. It was as good a place as any to make their camp.

"I cannot believe we are camping out here when we could be inside of a nice warm inn, drinking piping hot mugs of butterbeer. You owe me," she said, pointing at Draco while he used his wand to set fire to some twigs and brush they had collected.

Once it was lit, he sat down beside her and put his arm around her shoulders. Hermione cuddled in closer to him, intertwining her fingers with the free hand on his lap. The two of them stayed out there for the majority of the night, laughing and kissing beside the fire.

XXX

When Draco awoke the next morning he was alone, but Hermione had left a note magically stuck to his forehead. He laughed before using his wand to take it off and reading it.

_Good morning Draco,_

_ You looked so peaceful I didn't want to wake you. I've gone to see Hagrid and explain our situation to him. As broadly as possible, of course. I figured it would be best if I went alone and prepared him for your arrival. Merlin knows the two of you have never been the fondest of each other._

_ I should be back by lunchtime since I definitely don't want Hagrid to serve me. Make sure to stop by the Three Broomsticks to talk to Madam Rosmerta. I would like it if you, Hagrid, and I could stop in there tonight to talk strategy._

_ Anyways, have a pleasant day. Our first apart since starting this job, can you believe it? Enjoy your Hermione-free time because this is all you're getting. Believe it or not I think I already kind of miss you, and this is being said while I'm sitting here, staring at you sleeping._

_ Okay, now I sound creepy. That was definitely too much information! *wink*_

_ I'll see you later! Don't miss me too much._

_Love,_

_Hermione xoxo_

Draco blushed a little as he read her signature at the end. She'd said 'Love Hermione'. Maybe it didn't actually mean anything, it might have just been how she signed all of her letters. She definitely wrote it to Weasel, but was that what she wrote to Sophie? He couldn't remember. But one thing he did know was that she _never_ signed her letters to Weasel with 'xoxo'. Those were solely his.

After folding the letter, Draco stuffed it deep into his backpack, hiding it along with the photo he and Hermione had taken together in Sequoia. He still hated that picture, but it was the only one he had of the two of them together. He had already decided he was going to destroy it at the end of the summer but, for now, he wanted to keep it.

Once everything was tucked away safely, Draco changed his clothes, grabbed a pouch full of Galleons and headed out. There was something he needed to do today so he wanted to get this over with quickly.

When Draco arrived at the Three Broomsticks he decided not to go in. The breakfast rush was just ending and he knew Madam Rosmerta would be coming outside for a smoke at any moment. Before putting her under the Imperius Curse he had followed her for a week, partially to memorize her schedule and decide when was best to strike, but also partially because of his nerves. He couldn't bring himself to do it right away. Even now he often wondered how he ever succeeded. He wasn't exactly good at playing it coy, which was his strategy when approaching her.

Sure enough, less than five minutes after he arrived, Madam Rosmerta walked outside and lit up her pipe. Draco took a deep breath before walking over to her.

"Back again I see," said Madam Rosmerta without looking up. "So is this how you walked up when you put the curse on me?"

"Uh … no," said Draco, even though the answer was yes. "I just wanted to inform you that I was going to be in town for the week. I'll try to make my face as scarce as possible, but the girl I'm with would like to come in here tonight."

"As long as you got some money it's alright with me. I'm in no position to be refusing customers. Haven't forgotten about our deal, have you?" she asked.

"Of course not," said Draco, holding up the pouch of Galleons.

Madam Rosmerta took it from him passively. He could tell she hated accepting free money, especially from him, but she seemed to need it. The Three Broomsticks must have been doing worse than he thought.

Draco gave her a curt nod and started to walk away. He barely got two steps before she called him back. "Still traveling with that Granger girl, are you?"

"Yes," he answered without turning around.

"She's a good kid. Do us all a favor and make sure you don't taint her. Our world needs people like her. What it doesn't need is people like you messing with her head."

"I don't know what -"

"I saw the way she looked at you when you were here before. It's been over a month since then, I can only imagine it's gotten worse."

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Draco, finally turning around.

Rosmerta gave him a faint smile. "You're a charmer, Draco. Your whole family is. You know what to say to get a girl to fall for you, or at least get her into the bedroom."

"How dare you!" he shouted lividly. "I would never -"

"Never what? _Lie_ to get a girl to sleep with you? Can you sincerely tell me you've _always_ been honest with her?"

Draco said nothing.

Rosmerta smirked. "That's what I thought," she said, taking a long puff of her pipe, then blowing out several perfect smoke rings. "Honestly kid, your reputation must be pretty bad if even I've heard of it. Rumor is you've been lonely since the war, but no matter how many girls you shag you just can't seem to fill that void. You wanna know why?"

Draco was absolutely furious, but he nodded and waited for her to finish. For some reason he really wanted to hear what she had to say. He'd have to hold onto his anger just a little bit longer.

Rosmerta frowned at his clenched face. She knew he was holding back, but right now she didn't care. She had something to say and, dammit, she was going to say it. "Because people like you don't know how to love. You're only going to break her heart. You should cut her loose now, before she gets hurt." Putting out her pipe, Rosmerta looked at Draco one last time and said, "See you tonight," before going back inside.

Draco was left standing alone on the street, a million and one things racing through his mind. The worst part about what Madam Rosmerta said was that she was right. He didn't know how to love. Draco wasn't sure if his feelings for Hermione were that strong yet, but this was definitely the closest he'd ever been to having those sorts of feelings for someone. Still, Draco knew it was only a matter of time before he screwed this up. He liked to make jokes about her being too good for Weasley - which she was - but, really, she was too good for him too. Hermione deserved better. Someone like … Harry Potter?

"Oh Merlin no!" he shouted to himself. She was _definitely _too good for that prick.

Storming out of town, Draco went back to where their tent was pitched. He went into the trees around it and used his wand to throw anything and everything imaginable. Branches, rocks, entire bushes torn out by the roots, a loose log, Ruskle -

"Ruskle!" he shouted, as the house-elf went flying through the air. "_Immobulus_!" Draco was able to freeze him just before he slammed into a tree. He ran over and helped the elf to the ground before unfreezing him. "Ruskle, what are you doing out here?"

"It is Sunday, Young Master. You asked Ruskle to assist you today. When you did not return Ruskle got worried and went out looking for you. Your screams were rather loud, Sir."

"Right … Sunday," said Draco, almost forgetting about the surprise he'd had planned for Hermione for over a week now. "Well, let's get to it then."

And just like that, Draco pushed his problems aside, letting them continue to boil for another day. Even he was aware that it was only a matter of time before they erupted.

XXX

Hermione walked back to the tent from Hagrid's feeling slightly down. Her longtime friend was more than a little skeptical about helping her with Draco around, but he agreed to it. Hermione had assured him that Draco had changed and even mentioned how Grawp was a fan of him. Hagrid owled his half-brother immediately to see if this was true. He was still waiting on a response.

When Hermione got back to the tent she waited outside for a minute to gather her bearings. She didn't want Draco to know it hadn't gone well. So many people were so quick to judge him by his actions during the war. Granted, she had been no exception, but she knew better now. Despite what everyone believed Draco _had_ changed. Yes, his character was still the same but, overall, he was a better person. It would be nice if just one person was willing to see it.

Once Hermione felt like she was well enough composed, she went inside, suddenly overtook by the mouthwatering aroma of meat cooking. She breathed it in. "Is that roast beef?" she asked.

Both Draco and Ruskle jumped and looked over from what they were doing. Draco smiled at her arrival. "Back a little early, aren't you? Guess you really did miss me."

Hermione rolled her eyes before walking over and taking a peek around the kitchen. "Draco, are you two making Sunday Roast?"

"We are," he said, "but it was _meant_ to be a surprise."

"I'm very surprised," she said, beaming. She went over to Draco - who was currently chopping carrots with his wand - and hugged him from behind.

He twisted around in her arms and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Go sit down and read or something. We'll let you know when it's ready."

"You sure you don't need any help?" she asked.

Draco laughed before kissing her again. "This is your surprise, remember? No work _allowed_."

Hermione leaned up and kissed his lips before releasing him and going off to find one of her books. She tried to read for a while, but didn't get very far. She was too distracted by Ruskle ordering Draco around in the kitchen. If he wasn't using magic she might be worried this would be another 'chocolate mousse' incident, but she trusted Ruskle, even with his newfound apprentice. He hadn't failed to make a delicious meal yet.

When the food was finally ready Hermione insisted that Ruskle eat at the table with them. The house-elf looked to Draco for permission and, for once, he didn't object. Hermione and Draco sat down at the table while Ruskle served them. Hermione tried to serve herself but the house-elf wouldn't hear of it.

Only two bites in Hermione couldn't help but feel that there was something familiar about this Sunday Roast. She took another bite of the roast beef, one of the roast potatoes, one of the Yorkshire pudding. Even the steamed carrots tasted familiar. "You know, it's strange," she said. "This tastes exactly like my mom's Sunday Roast, and I mean _exactly_. It's uncanny."

"Not too uncanny," said Draco. "Ruskle spent last Sunday in the kitchen with your mother. She taught him everything there was to know about making the Sunday Roast."

Hermione's fork dropped to the ground. Ruskle immediately jumped out of his seat and picked it up. He had clean one by her plate before she even had the chance to pick her jaw up from where it had fallen on the table.

"You … you had him go to my house?"

"Yeah," said Draco, for the first time fearing that he had done something wrong. "Is that not alright?"

Mouth still agape, Hermione started to shake her head. Draco's heart sank. Oh no. He had messed up. He never did anything right and now she was going to -

"No, it's fine."

Oh thank Merlin, he thought.

"It's … great actually. I - I can't believe you did this."

Hermione started to tear up. Draco got out of his seat and went over beside her. He crouched down, putting one hand on her shoulder and the other on her lap. "Hey, you alright?"

Hermione nodded, tears now flowing steadily down her cheeks. "How did you know?" she asked.

"Know what?"

"That I was homesick," she gulped.

Draco smiled as he began to stroke her knee. "Well, it was quite obvious, wasn't it? You've mentioned more than once how long it's been since you've been there. I know it's not much, but I thought the food might at least ease your melancholy for a little while. You'll see your family again soon."

Hermione reached out and hugged him, her wet cheeks soaking into his shoulder. Draco squeezed her back and stroked her hair while she continued to sob into him. "Thank you," she whispered into his ear.

Draco let Hermione cry on him for a while, but eventually brought up that their food was getting cold and they should probably eat it. He and Ruskle hadn't worked for several hours on it for nothing. Hermione pulled away from him with a smile, giving him a kiss on the cheek before releasing him and letting him return to his seat. The entire time they ate she kept glancing up at him and smiling. She knew she'd been right about the changed Draco Malfoy.

XXX

Later that evening, Hermione guided a reluctant Draco through Hogsmeade by the hand. They were meeting Hagrid at the Three Broomsticks for dinner and drinks, and he was far from thrilled about it.

After his encounter with her that morning, Draco had no interest in seeing Madam Rosmerta again. She had hit a sore spot and he didn't want to feel her judgmental eyes on him all night. He also didn't really care to see Hagrid again either. Care of Magical Creatures had been his least favorite subject in school, mainly because of the giant buffoon. But Hermione really wanted them all to sit down together and he was trying to earn nice-guy points. He needed to prove he was worthy of her. Worthier than Weasel, anyway.

When they arrived at the pub, Hagrid was already sitting at a table in the corner and appeared to be at least three firewhiskey's in. As they walked over to him, Draco looked over to the bar and caught Madam Rosmerta's eye. She looked from him to Hermione's hand, which was still holding onto his and pulling him along. It wasn't an intimate handhold, but she still shook her head in disapproval.

Averting his attention from Madam Rosmerta, Draco decided to focus on one problem at a time, and tonight that was going to be the large man glaring at him from the corner.

"Hagrid! I am so glad you made it! You remember Draco," said Hermione, pushing the wizard forward.

"Oh yeah. I remember Malfoy," said Hagrid passively.

"Pleasure to see you again Professor," said Draco, holding out his hand.

Hagrid eyed it questioningly. Hermione cleared her throat and Hagrid looked at her before grabbing Draco's hand and shaking it, making sure to give it an extra tight squeeze as he did so.

"Wonderful," said Hermione smiling nervously as she took a seat. Draco shook the throbbing pain out of his hand before joining her.

"So, uh … Hagrid, what's new with you?" asked Draco in an attempt to make small talk.

"Nothin'." Hermione shot him a sharp look. "I mean, nothin' worth mentionin'. Still the professor of Care of Magical Creatures, no thanks ter yeh."

"Hagrid!"

"Sorry. Musta slipped out," said Hagrid, still eyeing Draco skeptically.

"That's quite alright," said Draco. "No point in pretending I didn't try to get you sacked once or twice during my time at school. And there's also no point in pretending you didn't make an error in judgment by having us take care of those bloody Skrewt things."

"Draco!"

"Sorry. Must have slipped out," said Draco, smiling at Hagrid.

"Hermione says yeh've changed, but yeh seem ter be the same spoiled brat ter me."

"Hagrid!"

"How dare you speak to me that way you half-giant oaf!" shouted Draco, rising from the table.

"Draco!"

"Yeh have no business travelin' with Hermione! I'll gladly help her get through the forest, but damn if I'm goin' ter help yeh!" shouted Hagrid, also rising from the table, knocking it as he did so.

"BOTH OF YOU SIT DOWN!" ordered Hermione in a frighteningly deep voice, slamming her hands on the table as she also rose from her chair. Draco and Hagrid fearfully obeyed. Taking several deep breaths, Hermione returned to her seat, looked around the table, and said, "You both _promised_ me you were going to be on your best behavior tonight, yet, we haven't even been here five bloody minutes and you're already at each other's throats! We are _all_ getting along tonight, as well as for the duration of this week. Hagrid," she turned her eyes to the large man, "Draco is my partner in this … project. If you want to help me then you have to help him too. If that does not work for you then I'm afraid we won't be needing your help after all. So, decide now, what will it be?" She paused and waited for Hagrid to answer.

Hagrid stared at her blankly for a moment before moving his eyes over to Draco, obvious disapproval still visible behind them. "I said I'd help and I mean' it. Don' know why yeh wanna go in there but I'll take yeh."

"Good," said Hermione, letting out a sigh of relief. "Now, Draco, apologize for calling Hagrid a half-giant oaf. That was very rude and uncalled for."

"Is he going to apologize for calling me a spoiled brat?"

"You _are_ a spoiled brat," she said with a wink.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Well, with that logic I will apologize for calling him an oaf, but he _is_ a half-giant." Noticing Hagrid's sunken face, Draco added, "And there's nothing wrong with that. Hermione and I owe the giants our lives."

"Yeah, she did say somethin' like tha'," said Hagrid, looking back at Hermione. "It'd be nice if the damn _Prophet_ got it right insteada makin' giants look bad."

"Yes, they often get negative press," said Hermione, frowning. "Really it's all that blasted Skeeter woman."

"I still don't know how we could have missed her," said Draco. Hermione sucked in her lips. "I know we were tired, but she sort of stands out, if you know what I mean."

"I know wha' tha's like," said Hagrid, chugging down the remainder of his firewhiskey.

Madam Rosmerta came over and took their order personally. Hagrid was not blind to the way she and Draco avoided looking at each other. When she walked away he asked, "How'd yeh get her ter let yeh in here?"

"Hagrid!"

"It's fine, Hermione," said Draco, squeezing her hand underneath the table. "Madam Rosmerta and I have reached an understanding. I scratch her back and she scratches mine, so to speak."

"Payin' her off, are yeh?"

Hermione opened her mouth to protest, but quickly shut it again. Unfortunately, Hagrid was spot on.

"I like to think of it as more of an investment," said Draco, without missing a beat. "After all, what would Hogsmeade be without the Three Broomsticks?"

Just then, the door into the inn opened, letting in a cool breeze. Hermione looked over and saw Headmistress McGonagall walk in. "Oh wonderful," she said, getting up from her seat. "I'll be right back. I just need to ask the professor something."

She walked away and Draco and Hagrid were left sitting alone. After a minute of awkward silence, Madam Rosmerta came over with their drink orders. Lifting his drink, Draco said, "Cheers," to the large man.

Hagrid reluctantly clinked glasses with him before chugging half his drink down in one gulp.

"If it's any consolation, I am trying to better myself," said Draco, looking over to see if Hermione was on her way back yet. She wasn't.

"Oh yeah? How yeh doing that, Malfoy? Stopped tryin' to kill good wizards, have yeh?"

"I never killed anyone," he said. "Everyone seems to keep forgetting that."

"Yeh tried."

"I never struck."

"Yeh would've."

Draco sighed. "Maybe so. It's hard to say now. I'm just glad it never came to that. I definitely owe Professor Snape one."

"Yeh owe 'im more 'n one," said Hagrid.

Draco gave a shallow nod. "I suppose I do. To Professor Snape then," he said, holding up his mug. Hagrid clanked it again, this time hitting it so hard nearly both of their glass's shattered. After taking a sip, Draco looked at Hagrid and asked, "Still have Fang, do you?"

"Aye," said Hagrid. "He's a good dog. Strong. Loyal. I'll let yeh take 'im in with yeh when I'm not around. Still don' know what the two o' yeh wanna go in there for."

"We have a list of things we need."

"Harry stopped by a few weeks back an' told me she was workin' fer Ollivander. Tha' wha' this is fer?"

Draco glanced over at Hermione, who was still chatting merrily with Professor McGonagall. "She's a stickler for the rules so don't tell her I openly admitted this, but yes. We're collecting items for him. Don't know what he needs them for, since half the stuff he wants from the Forbidden Forest isn't used to make wands, but who am I to argue? He says jump, we say how high."

"Yeh pay 'im off too?"

"Nope," said Draco, taking another sip of his drink. "Been working for him for years, actually. No money given _or_ received."

Hagrid frowned beneath his bushy beard. The only way Draco could even tell that this is what he was doing was by the expression in his eyes. "A'ight Malfoy, lemme be blunt. I don' trus' yeh. Never gonna. Don' know why, but Hermione seems ter think highly o' yeh, an' I trus' her, so I'm gonna play along. Fer her sake."

Draco never got the chance to respond.

"Draco, guess what?" shouted Hermione, pulling the headmistress along with her to their table. "Professor McGonagall is going to let us use the library at Hogwarts. Isn't that exciting?"

"Uhh … sure," he said. "Nostalgic for studying, are you?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "No, you imbecile," she said, even though the answer was yes. "I thought we could use it to research that thing."

"That thing?" he asked.

"Yes, that _thing_. You know, the thing we've been unable to do." Draco stared at her blankly. "To the things we encountered in the mountains and the desert."

"Ooooh!" he said, finally catching on. "That _thing_!"

"Yes," said Hermione, happy he finally understood. "The Hogwarts library has books on everything. I thought it would be a great place to start our research. Thank you again, Professor McGonagall," she said, pushing the woman into an open seat. "I hope you two don't mind, I've invited her to join us for dinner."

No one objected. Both Draco and Hagrid looked relieved, actually. It would be nice to have not just one, but two peacekeepers at their table. And this way there would be less of a chance that Draco and Hagrid would be left alone again.

The night went fairly smoothly. Hermione caught up with both professors while Draco kept fairly quiet. He was well aware that neither of them had ever been his greatest fan. Professor McGonagall never seemed to dislike him, but both hers and Hagrid's perpetual loyalty to Professor Dumbledore put him in an awkward place.

"How is your father doing," Professor McGonagall asked under her breath while Hermione and Hagrid gossiped about the upcoming wedding.

"Fine," said Draco, nervously squeezing Hermione's hand, which was, once again, clasped with his under the table. "Why do you ask?"

"I am no fool, Mr. Malfoy. When someone as influential as your father all but vanishes from the wizarding world, it is never without reason."

"Yes, well, reason or not, my father's influence in the wizarding world greatly deteriorated after the war."

"It takes more than a _bad_ reputation to silence a Malfoy. You are a prime example of that."

Draco smiled. "What does that mean?"

"No need to be modest, Mr. Malfoy," she said, glancing sideways at him. "I am well aware of all you have done to clear your tarnished family name. Your countless donations to St. Mungo's Hospital, the War Widow's Charity, and the restoration of Hogwarts have not gone unnoticed."

Draco groaned. "That last one was supposed to be anonymous."

"Not to mention how highly Mr. Ollivander speaks of you. Even the Minister praises your efforts in assisting the Ministry during your father's absence."

"Also anonymous …"

"You know Kingsley, Draco?"

Draco turned to see Hermione at full attention. Apparently, his conversation with McGonagall had struck her interest. "Uh, yeah … somewhat." Only a mild fib. He had gotten to know Kingsley Shacklebolt fairly well over the last couple of years, but only after his mother deemed his father too ill to perform his duties at the Ministry any longer. His father's job wasn't difficult, he was mostly just an advisor, but Draco worked hard to clear the Malfoy name, volunteering for several projects that would normally be considered beneath him. Still, he did them and, little by little, his family name was starting to regain its standing.

"You know, I've worked at the Ministry for a couple of years now. How come I've never seen you there?"

"Clearly, no one at this table understands the meaning of 'anonymous'. I've worked hard at _not_ being seen."

"But if you're trying to rebuild the Malfoy name, how come everything you're doing is 'anonymous'?" asked Hermione. "Don't you want people to know about all of the good you're doing?"

"The important people already know," said Draco. "My family doesn't want to bring attention to how we lost our status in the first place."

"You just want to _be_ superior again," finished Hermione. "You don't want anyone to notice you were ever _not _in control. Am I right?"

"Something like that," said Draco, sinking down in his chair. He already knew she wasn't going to like this.

"I think that's a _horrible_ idea!" He called it. "You should be showing people all of the good you've been doing, not trying to hide it! Help me out here, Professor McGonagall," she said, turning to the Headmistress and crossing her arms.

"Mr. Malfoy is free to make his own choices, Ms. Granger. If he doesn't want people to know about this then I'm sure he has his reasons."

"And what's that?" asked Hermione. "Keeping it a secret so no one will know about all of the lies and manipulation the Malfoy's use to get ahead in life?" Hermione's eye went wide. She instantly knew she had gone too far.

"How dare you talk about my family that way!" shouted Draco, sitting firmly up in his chair. "You know nothing about us _or_ what we've been through!"

"Only because you won't tell me anything!"

"It's none of your bloody business, Hermione! Stop trying to stick your nose in where it doesn't belong! You don't needto know _everything_ about _everyone_!"

Hermione breathed heavily out of her nose before uncrossing her arms, putting her hands calmly on the table and saying, "You're right. It is none of my business. I'm sure you have your reasons for remaining 'anonymous'. But can I ask you one thing?"

"Fine," said Draco, once again leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms over his chest.

"Last year someone graciously, and 'anonymously', donated ten-thousand Galleons to my department. Was that you?"

Draco sighed. He knew she was smart, but he was still hoping she wouldn't figure this out. "Yes."

"Did you know I worked there?"

"Yes," he said.

"And you _still_ donated?"

Draco sighed again. There was no reason for him to lie at this point. "That's _why_ I donated, Mione."

"Money was also 'anonymously' donated to the Auror department, and given to George and Ron for Weasleys Wizard Wheezes. All you?"

"One and the same," he said passively.

"Why?"

"I said you could ask _one_ thing."

"Humor me, Draco. We both know those donations _weren't_ about the Malfoy name."

Draco looked around the table. All eyes were fixed on him. He then looked and saw one of those extendable ear things on the floor. He followed it to Madam Rosmerta at the bar. She jumped when she saw him look at her and immediately went back to work.

Looking back to the table, Draco focused his eyes on his drink in front of him while he said, "I don't know. I guess I thought it might clear my guilty conscience."

"And?" she asked.

Draco shook his head. "No such luck." After picking up his drink and chugging the last of its contents, Draco stood up and said, "I'm tired. I'm going to head back to the tent."

"I'll come with you," said Hermione, jumping up from her seat.

Draco held his hand out. "No, Hermione, you should stay. You don't get to visit with Hagrid or Professor McGonagall very often. Enjoy yourself." Turning to the other occupants of their table, Draco said, "Have a good rest of your evening, Professors. I will be seeing both of you very soon."

And with that, Draco left the Three Broomsticks. He had gotten about halfway back to the tent when he heard someone call his name. He turned around and was surprised to see Hermione running towards him.

"What are you doing?" he asked as she reached him.

Hermione stopped in front of him, caught her breath, and smiled. "I have all week to catch up with them, Draco, and I get the feeling you need me more tonight than they do."

Draco wasn't going to argue with her. He was definitely feeling down and could use a little cuddle time, but he still had to ask, "Why?"

Grabbing both of his hands in hers, Hermione said, "I know you're not ready to tell me about your father, and I have more-or-less accepted that, but I'm not stupid, Draco. I know all of this do-gooder stuff you've been doing is somehow connected to him. And I also know how close you once were with him. Whatever is going on with your family, there's no way you're not affected by it. So I'm going to be here for you. No matter what. You don't have to tell me anything. Just … let me be here," she said, squeezing his hands.

Draco smiled before pulling her in and hugging her. He nuzzled into her hair while she caressed his back. He had never had anyone openly care for him the way Hermione did. So this was what having a true friend felt like.

The two of them stood in the street for a while before eventually walking back to the tent hand-in hand.

29


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Sorry for the delay! Work has been crazy lately and left little to no time to think of what fun shenanigans Hermione and Draco will get into next!**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoy!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

"AHHHHH!" Draco leapt out of the way just as the Whomping Willow's branches came crashing down. "Don't worry, Hermione! I got this!"

"Draco, there's a better way - WATCH OUT!"

An extremely large branch on the tree was coming straight for Draco's head. There was no chance for him to dodge it this time, so Draco did the only thing he could think of. He grabbed onto the branch and held on for dear life.

"Draco, are you _crazy_? Let go of that bloody thing! You're going to get yourself killed!"

"Can't let go now!" he yelled as the branches went crazy, trying to thrash at themselves to get him. He definitely hadn't thought this one through.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake - _Wingardium Leviosa!_" called Hermione, pointing her wand at a twig. She guided it through the tree's swaying branches and jabbed it against a knot in its base. The tree became still just moments before it was going to smash Draco to the ground.

His eyes were squinted shut, and when he opened them he was surprised to find he was still alive. Hermione walked by him, her wand still held high, looking quite irritated as she mumbled something about him never listening to her. She stopped at the base of the tree and used a rock to hold the twig in place against a particular knot.

"How did you do that?" he asked, moving so he was straddling the branch a bit more casually.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "If you had just listened to me in the first place instead of barging straight in, I could have told you the tree has a soft spot. When you press it the Whomping Willow becomes completely immobile."

"Oh," said Draco, suddenly feeling like an idiot. "Good to know."

Hermione chuckled while shaking her head. "You're not Aldor the Unbeatable, you know."

"I think you mean _Andros _the_ Invincible_," he corrected.

Hermione rolled her eyes. _Boys_. Looking to the tree, she asked, "Which branch do you think we should take?"

Draco looked around for a minute before patting his hand against the one he was already on. "I have a particular dislike for this one here. I say we chop it." And then, in Sophie-style, he pulled his blade out of nowhere and started cutting.

As soon as he had the branch, Draco jumped off the tree. The moment his feet hit the ground, the rock Hermione had placed to hold the twig gave out and the tree became mobile again. Draco and Hermione ran as fast as they could, eventually tripping over each other's feet and somersaulting out of harm's way.

The two of them lay on the ground laughing while the tree, once again, went completely still. When their chuckles finally died down, Hermione rolled onto her side and looked at Draco, who turned his head and looked back at her.

"Try not to be so hasty in the Forbidden Forest, will you? The two of us survived a war here. Imagine what people would say after we endured the wrath of You-Know-Who, but died three years later because we were careless around a tree."

"You're right, that does sound ridiculous," he said. "Leisurely it is then. I think we can manage that." He leaned over to give her a kiss but Hermione moved away as he did so.

"Not here, Draco. Hagrid's supposed to be meeting us."

Draco frowned at her. At first he'd been excited about coming back here and spending a fairly relaxed week collecting items with Hermione, but now they were only two days in and he was already starting to hate it. They had to be so secretive all of the time. It was very frustrating, especially since he found himself wanting to hold her and kiss her a little longer each day. It was starting to become a problem. He had just over a month to get over these feelings. Maybe he should start now. This was as good a place as any to do that.

Right then, Mr. Ollivander's owl swooped down and took the branch out of Draco's hand, flying off immediately. Draco sat up and said, "Honestly, I don't know why he just doesn't make the owl do all of this for him. It certainly seems capable."

"Owls can't cut branches," was the only answer Hermione could come up with.

"Hey there, Hermione!" They both turned to see Hagrid waving at them from across the way.

Hermione waved back brightly. "Hagrid! I'm so glad you're here!" She got to her feet and ran to meet him halfway.

"Was it me imagination, or did I jus' see Malfoy wrestlin' with the Whompin' Willow?"

Hermione laughed. "No, you saw right. Draco jumped in before I could tell him about the soft spot," she said, glancing sideways at him. "He won't be trying _that_ again." She winked.

Draco got to his feet and walked over to meet them. "Merlin, Hermione. Rub it in why don't you?" he said, nudging her arm. "I admit it was an error in judgment. Now let's get the real party started."

"Here is our list, Hagrid," said Hermione, pulling out a small piece of parchment with the items they needed on it. "Oh, wait." She took it back and used the self-inking quill in her pocket to cross out _Branch from the Whomping Willow_. "There you are." She smiled as she handed it back to him.

Hagrid took the list and read over its contents, his eyebrows rising a little higher with each item he scanned. "Tha' Ollivander sure keeps yeh busy. Oh, sorry," he said, glancing quickly at Draco. "I'm not supposed ter know tha'."

Hermione gasped as she looked at Draco with wide eyes. She could _not_ believe he told him. What blatant disregard for the rules. Mr. Ollivander could fire him for this.

Draco looked at Hermione and gave her a cunning grin. "Oh relax, Mione. Mr. Ollivander won't care about this. He doesn't want us to die, and our guide should know what he's guiding us for."

Hermione frowned. "Maybe. But I still don't like it. Rules are there for a reason, Draco."

"And what's that? To make our lives more difficult? Because that's what they're doing."

Hermione rolled her eyes before turning back to Hagrid. "So what do you think?"

"It's a mighty big lis', Hermione, but I'll help yeh if I can. Some o' the unicorn hair and the Acromantula venom I can get, but it won' be easy. The spider's haven' been the friendlies' o' creatures since Aragog died, but after the war they don' try ter eat me no more."

"Fabulous," said Draco, turning even paler than usual.

Hermione nudged him and smirked. "You're not scared, are you?"

Draco gulped. "No."

Hermione and Hagrid both looked at each other and laughed. "Shall we get going then?" she asked.

Hagrid led the way to the forest, Hermione and Draco following closely at his heels. They stopped by Hagrid's cabin first to get Fang, who was happily gnawing on a giant bone in the front yard.

"Come Fang! C'mere boy!" The boarhound got to his feet and joyfully ran into his master's arms. "Tha'sa good boy! Yeh remember Hermione, dontcha?"

The dog looked at Hermione, his large tongue hanging out of his mouth with a trail of slobber leaking from it. He licked her hand before looking at Draco and tackling him to the ground, proceeding to lick his face repeatedly.

"Ah! What is it doing? Get it off of me!"

Hagrid laughed as he pulled Fang off of Draco by the skin on the back of his neck. "Guess he remembers yeh."

"Fantastic," said Draco, climbing to his feet and brushing himself off.

The four of them continued into the forest. While they trekked through it, Hermione proceeded to ask Hagrid a million questions about the other items on their list.

"Tell me about the Undead Root. What does it look like? Where can we find that?"

"Dunno wha' it looks like, but the rumor is it only shows itself at midnight."

"Any idea where?" she asked again.

"Not in the slightes'," he said. "McGonagall's lettin' yeh use the library. Might wanna star' there."

"And how about this 'Skeleton Tree'? Any ideas on that one?" she asked.

Hagrid shook his head. "Nope. Think I heard o' it though. Some children's story."

Hermione immediately dug through her backpack for _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_. She skimmed through it while they walked, and Draco had to stop her from tripping and falling several times. Eventually he grabbed her by the shoulders and guided her forward. Hagrid kept glancing back at them, eyeing Draco skeptically. He didn't like him touching Hermione, but if it stopped her from getting hurt there wasn't much he could do about it.

"Aha! Here it is! _The Skeleton Tree_. It's the title and everything. I knew I'd heard of it before."

"Are we really going back to that thing?" asked Draco. "Haven't we had enough wizard tales for one summer?"

"Guess not," said Hermione, flipping through the pages.

"So wha's the story?" asked Hagrid.

Hermione skimmed through it, and then said, "It looks like the tree was made from the bones of a wizard named Barnaby Baggins. I wonder if he's related to Frodo," she laughed. No one else got her joke. Hermione sighed. Sometimes she missed hanging out with Muggles. Clearing her throat, she continued, "Anyhow, Barnaby was a Herbologist and loved absolutely everything to do with plants. In fact, he wanted to be a plant. His wife, Brunhilda, was a jealous witch and convinced that he must be having an affair since he was rarely ever at home. So one night she followed him. When she found out he really did spend all of his time with plants she was even more furious than if he found him in the arms of another woman, so she hexed him. He fell stunned to the ground with roots sticking out of his head and fingers. He landed face down and she left him there. He suffocated and died, withering away and becoming nothing but a pile of bones."

"Brutal," said Draco. Sometimes he wondered about these _supposed_ children's stories.

"_But_," continued Hermione, "the roots she hexed on him burrowed into the ground and kept growing, eventually creating a full-blown tree out of his remains."

"Any hints on its location?" asked Draco, guiding her slightly to her left so she wouldn't run into a normal tree.

"Not really," said Hermione scanning the story again. "But it does mention that at the time of the hexing he was studying algae, so I guess it must be near water somewhere."

"If it's even real."

"_The Muggle Woman Who Turned into a Tree _was real," she said, finally putting the book away. "I don't think _The Skeleton Tree_ sounds that implausible."

"What's with all the bloody tree tales, anyway?" he asked.

"I think this one's a little more gruesome. At least the other story leaves you with hope."

"_Leaves_. Was that a pun?"

"I think it's pre'y nice," said Hagrid. "He wan'ed ter be a plant an' now he is one. Good fer 'im."

"I don't think he wanted to be a dead plant, though, Hagrid," said Hermione practically.

Hagrid shrugged. "Maybe not. But how dead can he be if he's still growin'?"

"He makes a good point," laughed Draco. "Something inside old Barnaby has to still be alive, or else this 'skeleton tree' would have withered and died ages ago."

"Draco, it's called a _skeleton_ tree. That sounds pretty dead to me."

"Well, maybe we have to see it to believe it."

"Ah, here we are," said Hagrid, stopping suddenly.

Draco and Hermione both ran into his back. They peaked around the side of the large man to see what he was looking at. Hermione's eyes immediately lit up. "Draco, look. Unicorns."

Draco already was looking and even he couldn't help but smile at the tiny gold foal frolicking at its mother's feet. "I have never seen a baby one before," he said, taking a step forward. Both unicorns' heads whipped in his direction. He froze.

Hermione giggled. "Did you never pay any attention in Care of Magical Creatures, Draco? Unicorns-don't-like-men."

"Are you calling me a man?" he said with a wink. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Looks like this'll be up ter yeh, Hermione," said Hagrid, grabbing Draco by the shoulder and moving both of them a step back.

Hermione smiled before walking forward, making sure to move at a slow pace so as not to frighten them. The foal frolicked up to her and licked her hand. It started jumping around her in circles, hanging by her side as she approached its mother.

"Hello pretty girl," she said, holding out her hand. The unicorn was beautiful, its fur a silky white purer than any snow. It moved closer and touched its nose to Hermione's hand. The witch giggled. She took another step forward and began stroking the unicorn's glossy mane. "Draco. Hagrid. I'm petting a wild unicorn, can you believe it?" Hermione asked, turning to the boys in absolute euphoria.

Draco smiled while he watched Hermione laugh as she continued to pet the exquisite creature. Her face was lit up, and her eyes were the brightest amber he had ever seen them. Her beauty in that moment was enough to rival that of a unicorn's. In his eyes, she was even more breathtaking than the creature beside her.

Draco gasped. That's when he knew. He kept trying to convince himself he could forget about everything that had happened between him and Hermione at the end of the summer, but he realized now that he was wrong. He didn't want to forget. What he wanted was to keep her. Have her be his instead of Weasley's.

Oh Merlin. Draco turned a ghostly white, maybe even one to rival the color of the unicorn's fur. He couldn't believe it. Pureblood Draco Malfoy was falling for Muggle-born Hermione Granger. Like, really, really falling for her. And it was bad. Couldn't get her out of his head, or imagine life without her bad. He gasped again. His mother would kill him if she ever found out.

"Yeh alrigh'?" asked Hagrid, glancing sideways at him.

Draco nodded. "Of course. Why do you ask?"

"Yeh keep gaspin'. Thought maybe yeh were afraid o' unicorns."

Draco laughed. "Hardly." Just then, the foal galloped forward and nudged his head against Draco's hand. He looked down at the small unicorn and stroked his fingers through its soft mane. "See? Not afraid."

"Aw, Draco, it likes you!" said Hermione as she carefully plucked a hair from the mother unicorn's tail. "For some reason animals just love him. You should have seen the way the phoenix living in Grawp's mountains nuzzled up to him."

"What do you mean 'for some reason'? I am completely loveable."

Hermione laughed. "I only meant that animals seem to love you more than you love them. Even Fang gave you a warmer greeting than he gave me, and I know him quite a bit better."

It was true. Even now the large boarhound was whining jealously at Draco's feet while he paid attention to the other animal. "Weird," he said, glancing down at him. "Maybe I should take other Weasley up on his offer and work with dragons."

"I think our track record shows that dragons are immune to your charm. You need to work with more peaceful creatures."

"Like over-sized dogs and unicorns?" he laughed.

Hermione smiled. "Exactly. Now, pluck a hair from the little one and let's get a move on. I'd like to scratch a few items off our list today so we can spend the majority of tomorrow researching in the library."

Draco did as he was told, though he wasn't exactly thrilled about going back to Hogwarts to study. He hadn't been back there since the war and, the truth was, he didn't want to go back. There was nothing but dark memories and inner demons lurking in those walls. Why Hermione wanted to open that door was beyond him.

Taking out her camera, Hermione snapped a photo of the adult unicorn, and another of the baby playing with Draco. She snapped one more of just the baby, saying the first was bad, but really she just liked it so much she wanted to keep it for herself. Once the photos were taken she took two pouches out of her backpack and put the hairs with their corresponding photos in each.

"I doubt Mr. Ollivander's owl is going to want to fly in here," she said, putting the pouches - and her own personal photo - away. "We'll have to give this to him later. Where to now, Hagrid?"

It was hard to tell through the trees, but Hagrid claimed it was about lunchtime. He guided them to a nearby watering hole, which Hermione checked thoroughly and concluded that there was no skeleton tree there.

Ruskle had packed them all sandwiches made from the leftover roast beef they had had the day before. He had made an extra big one for Hagrid after Draco had made a joke about his size in comparison to the original sandwich the house-elf had made. He even packed some extra meat for Fang, which the dog gobbled down happily.

When they were finished eating, Hagrid decided that to make the most of their day they might as well go to the Acromantula nest - since unicorns tended to be a hit and miss- and try to acquire some venom.

"Remember yeh two, the spider's aren' so friendly these days, so make sure to watch yer back."

"These days?" said Hermione, laughing nervously. "Have you forgotten when they tried to eat Harry and Ron? And that was _before_ Aragog died."

Hagrid didn't respond, which was fine. Hermione already knew she was fighting a losing battle.

It was a long walk from where they were to the Acromantula's nest. The closer they got the more skeptical Hermione and Draco became. They quickly fell several steps behind Hagrid. Even Fang hung back with them. The dog was well aware of where they were going, and he didn't like it any more than they did.

"Keep up yeh two!" Hagrid shouted back at them. "We're almos' there!"

Hermione cringed. She reached out and grabbed Draco's hand, but he was quick to pull it away from her. "Not here, Hermione. Hagrid might see."

Hermione stopped where she was and stared, slightly stunned, at Draco's moving back. When she gathered her bearings she ran and caught up with him. "Don't be like that," she said, grabbing his arm and holding him still. "It's just that … well, Hagrid means well and all, but he isn't exactly the best at keeping secrets. And, like I told you before, if Ron finds out I want it to be from me."

"Are you going to tell him?"

"Uh … What?"

"At the end of the summer, are you going to tell Weasley about what happened between us?"

"I-I don't know. I haven't really thought about it."

Draco smiled joylessly. "I don't believe you. I think you already know perfectly well that you aren't going to tell him."

"What makes you so sure of that?" she asked.

"Because you want us to get along so you and I can continue being friends. Let's not kid ourselves. We both know he's not going to want to be tolerant of me, and if he finds out we shagged, well, you can just forget about it altogether. You can't have it all, Hermione. You're a smart girl. You know that."

"I suppose you're right," said Hermione, slightly loosening her grip on his arm. "Maybe I never did plan on telling Ron, but so what? It's not like you planned on telling anyone you know. If Hagrid were one of your friends you'd be doing the exact same thing."

"Maybe so, but we're never going to find that out now, are we?" Hermione said nothing as she shamefully cast her eyes to the floor. She hadn't meant to hit him where it hurt. "Either way it doesn't matter," he said. "We're stuck in this place for a week, and I don't want the only time you grab my hand to be when you think no one is watching. While we're here it's all or nothing. I'll leave the choice up to you."

Draco pulled his arm out of Hermione's grasp and continued walking in the direction Hagrid had gone. Fang was still loyally at his side. Hermione was about to call after him when they both heard a scream. Draco turned around and their eyes locked. It was Hagrid. Without a second thought, they both ran in the direction of his cries.

When they got there Hagrid was laying spread eagle on the ground. "Hagrid, what happened?" asked Hermione. Both she and Draco grabbed one of his large hands and pulled him to a sitting position.

Hagrid stared at the two of them, looking dazed. Without saying anything he pointed behind them. They both turned and gasped. A spider twice the size of Aragog had been webbed and suffocated onto the entrance of the Acromantula's nest.

"That was Banog. One o' Aragog's firs' offspring and the curren' leader o' the colony. He was one o' the las' to abide by 'is father's request and not harm me. Who coulda done this?"

"Well, judging from the webs, I'd say some of his colony did it. There must have been a usurper," said Draco, matter-of-factly.

"But I thought the Acromantula's ate their dead," said Hermione. "Why is he still displayed there?"

"It is a message," said a hissing voice behind them, "for any of my brothers and sisters who dare try and defy me."

All of their eyes went wide as they turned around and found a spider maybe half the size of Banog creeping towards them. Several others began to close in around him.

Hagrid's brow furrowed as he glared at the new colony leader. "Yeh did this? What right did yeh have ter kill another?"

"I don't think spiders have the same mind frame as humans do," said Draco. "This doesn't seem like that farfetched of a scenario."

"SHUT IT!" shouted Hagrid. "Jus' 'cause yeh're no better than this murderer don' mean yeh can put all spiders in the same category."

Draco was taken aback. "Ouch," he said.

"Hagrid, that wasn't very nice," said Hermione, even though she looked far more interested in the slowly approaching spiders than in Hagrid's words. Her wand was already gripped firmly in her hand and ready to strike at a moment's notice.

"Yeh're right. I apologize, Hermione," he said, climbing to his feet.

"How about, I apologize, _Draco_," she said.

"Don't bother, Hermione. The big oaf - uhh, Hagrid, is never going to forgive me."

"But he _should_. You _should_ forgive him, Hagrid. He didn't do anything."

When Hagrid didn't say anything, Draco gave him an out. "While I commend your efforts to defend me, this isn't really the time or place for this conversation."

Hermione looked up and saw that even more spiders were scaling down the trees. "Noted," she said. "So what's the plan?"

"I'm thinking running is our only option. We can't exactly take off on our brooms and leave our larger party members behind."

Fang whimpered as he crouched down by Hagrid's leg. The large man picked up his dog and threw him over his shoulders. "Runnin' sounds like a good idea ter me," he said, shuffling them all towards their only exit, a strategically placed pathway leading them straight into the heart of the nest.

Hermione and Draco shot several freezing charms and sparks at the spiders, but there were just too many of them to do much damage. Immobilizing twenty spiders when there were thousands of them really wasn't a whole lot of help in their dire situation.

"Okay, so far this summer we have survived a different swarm of giant spiders, two dragon attacks, vampires, and Dementor's. I _refuse _to go down this way!" shouted Hermione, running even deeper into the spiders nest. "We need a plan!"

"Alright. You're the brains of this operation. Tell us, what are spiders scared of?" asked Draco. "Because, clearly, our feeble attacks aren't working."

"The only thin' Acromantula's fear is the basilisk," said Hagrid, grabbing Hermione by the collar and pulling her away from a striking spider.

"A basilisk?" Draco repeated. Both Hagrid and Hermione nodded. "Oh great. Why didn't I think of that? I have a spare one of those in my backpack!"

"Sarcasm helps no one," said Hermione, freezing several more spiders.

They were now in the heart of the nest with nowhere to go but up. The only problem was 'up' led to even more spiders trickling from the dark space above them. Their leader had long vanished, but they were anticipating his arrival at any moment.

"Well, it looks like I must have lost the basilisk in my backpack. Should I just conjure one with my wand?"

Hermione froze, the gears in her mind ticking loudly. Then the light bulb turned on. She gasped. "Draco, that's it! Use your Patronus!"

"My Patronus?" he asked.

"Yes! Your Patronus is a snake! How are they to know it isn't real?"

"Well, you just shouted that it isn't. That's one sure fire sign."

"None of them are listening, you idiot! Conjure it now and make sure it's big!"

"Big?" he repeated. She nodded. "How the bloody hell am I supposed to make it big? I've only just learned how to do it, and I've never seen you make your otter any bigger."

"I've never tried! Maybe I could, and now is as good a time as any to experiment! Conjure it!"

Draco held out his wand and tried to conjure his Patronus while Hermione blasted spiders away from him, but he was having trouble coming up with a happy memory right now.

"AARGGH!"

They both shot around just in time to see Hagrid go down. One of the spiders from above them had thrown a rock at his head. They were incredibly clever for bugs. Fang, who was still wrapped around Hagrid's shoulders, fell limp with him, not even bothering to move when he landed on the ground. Draco suspected he was playing dead, which wasn't going to do him any good since, at any moment here, he might actually _be_ dead.

"What are you waiting for!" shouted Hermione, shooting sparks randomly above her head. "Conjure it - AHHH!"

The colonies leader had finally reappeared. He swept down from the ceiling and scooped Hermione up, pulling her back into the air with him.

"DRACO!"

"HERMIONE!" he shouted after her. Holding his wand high, he shouted, "_Expecto Patronum_!"

A huge serpent shot out of his wand. It was three times the size of the one he normally conjured, and still ravaged around the way it always did. The spiders cowered at the sight of it, all of them scurrying towards the exit.

"No, no! You fools! It is all a trick! It is -"

"_Confringo_!"

"AHHH!"

The giant spider burst into flames as Hermione grabbed at its pincers. It dropped her as it fell to the ground itself, landing in a still heap of flames on the ground. Draco's wand was occupied with his Patronus, and he was afraid to stop it since many spiders were still lurking around, so he did the only logical thing he could think of at the moment. He tried to catch Hermione with his bare hands. Needless to say, the two of them landed with quite a thump.

"Oh, ow!" cried Hermione, climbing off of him. "Are you alright, Draco? I didn't squash anything important, did I?"

"Did you just make a dirty joke?" He laughed while carefully moving to a sitting position and rubbing the back of his head. As a matter of fact, she had squashed a few important things. His crown was throbbing horribly.

"I - no, I didn't mean it like that," she said blushing.

"What's that in your hand?" he asked while pointing.

Hermione held her hand up and smiled. "Oh, this. It's one of the spider's pincers. I hope there's still venom in it."

"You … yanked off the pincer of a giant spider?"

"Well, I didn't have much of a choice, did I?" she said, pulling a small vial out of her backpack and pouring the liquid she had managed to grab inside of it. "I mean, I burned the bloody thing. We weren't going to have much luck procuring venom from a charred spider."

Draco fell back laughing. "Hermione, you're amazing."

Once the vial of venom was safely packed away, Hermione leaped forward and tackled Draco into a hug. "We really need to stop this whole near-death thing we keep having."

Draco hugged her back. He smiled as he noticed his Patronus circling calmly above their heads. "Hermione, look!" he said. She turned around and stared up at it. "I thought of you when I conjured it. I thought the thrashing would help."

"But it's not thrashing now," she said, keeping her eyes trained on it.

"I know," he smiled, placing his hand in hers. Nothing happened.

She leaned over and kissed him in the cheek. Staring straight into his silver eyes, she smiled and said, "As happy as I am, we need to get out of here. No need to press our luck."

"Right," he said, climbing to his feet. He held his hand out and pulled her up. While Hermione went over to Hagrid and tried to figure out how to transport him, Draco moved his Patronus around the nest. "If _any_ of you try to harm me or my friends again, I can assure you I will send my basilisk back here and he will hunt you down, one by one. Understand?" By the many clicking sounds that followed he assumed that they did. "Good. Now, please clear the way for us. We will be heading out now." Movement was heard all around.

Hermione used a levitation spell on Hagrid, but was obviously struggling since her hand would not stop shaking. They would need to move fast. Draco grabbed Fang by the collar and guided all of them out of there with his Patronus in the lead.

When they got a far enough distance from the nest Draco let his Patronus fade and helped Hermione by casting his own levitation spell. Even with the two of them it still took a lot of strength to get Hagrid out of the forest and back to his cabin.

By the time they plopped Hagrid onto his bed the sun was already setting. Draco fed Fang some meat while Hermione made tea. She had used a healing charm on Hagrid's head but he seemed to just be sleeping it off.

Hagrid woke nearly an hour later to find Draco and Hermione sitting at his table, drinking tea, while Fang gnawed on a bone at their feet. The witch and wizard both looked at him and smiled.

"Morning sunshine," said Draco.

"Wha' happened?" he asked.

"A spider threw a rock at your head,"' answered Hermione. "You've been out for quite some time."

"But … wha' happened? How did we get back here?"

Hermione proceeded to tell Hagrid the whole story while pouring him a cup of tea. He came over and joined them at the table, utterly embarrassed by the fact that he had been unable to protect them.

"I'm sorry, Hermione. Guess I wasn' much use ter yeh after all."

"What are you talking about, Hagrid? If it wasn't for you we never would have gotten the unicorn hairs. And that Acromantula thing was bound to happen either way."

"That's the price you pay for walking into a giant spider's nest," laughed Draco.

Hagrid looked at him, the bottom of his bushy beard quivering. He reached one giant hand out and patted Draco on the back, nearly knocking him out of his chair. "Yeh're alrigh', Malfoy. Sorry bout wha' I said earlier. But if yeh have wha' it takes ter take care o' our Hermione then who am I ter judge?"

"Uh, thanks," said Draco, rubbing at his whiplashed neck.

"Don't be so humble, Draco," laughed Hermione. "If it wasn't for your Patronus we'd all be dead right now."

"And you wanted me to try and change its form to something else," he said with a wink.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "It's just so predictable. Imagine how fun it would be if something like a rabbit came out of Draco Malfoy's wand."

"Uh, not funny at all." The three of them laughed together.

Hagrid made them dinner that night. Draco and Hermione both pretended to enjoy it, even though the bread was rock hard and the meat was undercooked.

Back at their tent that night, Hermione used one of her books to draw up a map of the Forbidden Forest. She marked off every rumored watering hole, and put frolicking unicorns and lurking spiders where they encountered each creature. She also marked off places she knew, like where Grawp used to live and where the centaurs always showed themselves.

Hermione worked for hours while Draco watched her. He eventually changed and went to bed but when she looked up she noticed he was climbing into the bed they never used.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

Draco turned around and looked at her. "Going to bed. What does it look like?"

Hermione frowned. "Don't be a prick. You know what I mean. Why are you sleeping over there tonight?"

"I told you before, Hermione. It's all or nothing here."

"You were serious? I thought -"

"You thought what? That I just said that in the heat of the moment?"

"Well … yes, actually. You can't really expect me to walk around Hogsmeade holding your hand. And what more, you can't actually want to. I'm a Mudblood, remember?"

"I told you not to call yourself that anymore," he said glaring at her.

Hermione sighed. "Fine. _Muggle-born_. Either way, what are you trying to prove?"

"I'm not trying to prove anything. You haven't stolen my mother's letters for a while, Hermione. She more-or-less knows. And I already told you I lost all of my friends."

"So … what are you saying exactly?"

Draco climbed into the spare bed, pulled the covers over his chest and stared up at the ceiling. "I'm saying I have nothing to lose. You're the only one who's hiding anything anymore."

"But … that's not fair."

"I don't think you should lie to Weasley about us. Not if you really plan on marrying him. Marriages are supposed to be about trust."

"But I was never going to lie. I … I was just going to neglect to mention it."

"And what if he asks?"

"He won't."

"He might. He's definitely going to ask if you had your summer fling. What are you going to do then? Mention a few stolen kisses with Phil and leave it at that?"

"I … I don't know."

"You say that a lot," he said, turning to his side facing away from her. "The clock's ticking, Hermione. Maybe it's time you start thinking about what you really want. Weasel's not going to wait for you forever."

And with that Draco closed his eyes and went to sleep, without someone to hold onto for the first time in Merlin knows how long. Hermione was left stunned and alone, the sound of a clock ticking echoing in her ears. Draco was right. Pretty soon the summer would be over and Hermione was even farther from understanding what it was she truly wanted than she had been at the beginning of it. Did she want to marry Ron? Or did she want something else entirely?

Unable to work any longer, Hermione put her map away and changed into her pj's, sighing as she took one last look at the blonde head poking out of the covers before climbing into her own bed and falling asleep.

25


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: This chapter's a bit long and I debated cutting it in half, but there just wasn't a good place to do that. Lucky you!**

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**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Hermione and Draco woke up early the next morning. Mr. Ollivander's owl was already waiting for them but for some reason it was only interested in taking the unicorn hairs. Hermione was forced to put the Acromantula venom back in her backpack for another day.

After a quick breakfast the two of them headed to Hogwarts for the first time in years. Professor McGonagall was already waiting outside of the entrance for them. She handed Hermione some magical keys and said, "I am entrusting the two of you with a great responsibility. All of the professors are too busy preparing for this school year to help you, so try and be respectful and stay out of their way. Most probably won't even notice you."

"Thank you Professor McGonagall. Would you mind if I went to visit the Gryffindor house while we're here? I've been feeling very nostalgic ever since we arrived."

"Of course not, Ms. Granger. Both of you are free to visit your houses. There are no passwords to enter, seeing as it is the summer. Good luck on your search."

And with that Professor McGonagall left, disappearing inside of the castle to what Hermione could only assume was the Headmaster's office.

Hermione and Draco headed straight for the library. He wanted to linger a bit but she wouldn't let him. "Today is about research. If we're successful today then we can wander tomorrow."

"You're no fun," he joked, nudging her shoulder. Hermione recoiled from his touch. She had taken their conversation very seriously the night before and had a lot to think about. What she needed right now was some space but, unfortunately, given their current circumstances, it didn't seem like she was likely to get it anytime soon.

Draco wasn't blind to her distance but didn't mention it. He knew he had given her a mind full. He had a lot to think about himself. While he'd preached a lot about having nothing to lose that wasn't exactly true. While his mother _did_ suspect something she didn't exactly have any hard evidence, other than a few reports from a loyal house-elf. If he and Hermione actually went public with their affair, even if it was only in Hogsmeade, his mother would surely find out and not hesitate to act. It was not like he and Hermione had low-profile names. He was a Malfoy and she was the loyal friend of Harry Potter. Everyone knew who they were. His mother would find out, his old friends would find out, Potter would find out, Weasley would find out … But maybe that's what he wanted.

In the library Hermione took it upon herself to research how to extract the heartstrings of a dragon. She left it up to Draco to find the location of the Undead Root.

"You trust me to research that all by myself?" he mocked.

She threw a quill at him. "Just go, will you?"

The two of them spent the majority of the day in silence, taking notes on any potential hints they could find. Most of Hermione's books just pointed her from one source to the next, but Draco made some progress. The Undead Root was not exclusive to the Forbidden Forest. It was more of a mutation than anything. They grew wherever blood was spilt on a plant called sagemary and only at midnight. It was visible for approximately fifteen minutes before it burrowed into the ground again.

Draco spent the rest of the day researching sagemary, but it was even harder to find information on than the Undead Root.

"This is hopeless," said Hermione as they walked out of Hogwarts that night, barely noticing as Draco skeptically eyed the stairs leading up to the astronomy tower. "If we do a little more research maybe we can attempt to go after the Undead Root tomorrow night, but I don't know if I'll ever find a way to extract the heartstrings of a dragon. It may be a lost cause."

"So what are you suggesting exactly? That we _actually _try and kill a dragon? Because, I have to be honest, Hermione, even if we succeed I don't know how to just take a heartstring either. But I suppose that doesn't matter since we'd never succeed, anyway."

"Actually, what I'm suggesting is that we don't even attempt it. What is the point when we know we are going to fail?"

"Oh, come now. That doesn't sound like the Hermione Granger I know. You'll find a way. You always do, right?"

"Maybe," she sighed. As they walked through Hogsmeade Hermione glanced down one of the side streets. "I don't suppose you'd be interested in grabbing a drink at the Hog's Head? I know it's a bit dodgy but at least there's no Madam Rosmerta for you to deal with."

"Isn't the Hog's Head owned by Dumbledore's brother?" asked Draco, raising his eyebrows.

"Yes, but he won't say anything to you. He's a bit passive, I suppose. Don't really know a better way to describe it."

Draco groaned. "But … if he does say something …"

"The moment you feel uncomfortable just tell me and we'll leave. We can even come up with a code word if you would like."

"A code word? What are we, five?" He laughed.

Hermione laughed back. "Sometimes a child's innocent game can mean much more in your adult life. How about dragon? If you ask me about dragons I'll make some excuse and we can leave. No one will ever know the plucky Draco Malfoy actually cares what other people think."

"Plucky? What am I, a duck?"

For a moment Hermione actually thought Draco might be making a reference to a cartoon she watched as a child, but quickly dismissed the idea. Plucky did sound duckish, which was probably why the cartoon had a duck character with that name in the first place.

"What are you smiling at?" he asked.

Hermione shook her head. "Nothing. Shall we go then?"

They walked over to the Hog's Head and took a seat at a table in a dark corner. Hermione went up to the bar and ordered two butterbeers with whiskey. She lingered there for a moment, chatting with the scruffy bartender. Even from a distance Draco noticed a familiarity in the man's eyes. He looked a bit more animal-like than Dumbledore, kind of like a goat, but the similarities were definitely there.

The man looked back and caught Draco's eyes for a minute while continuing to chat with Hermione. The witch turned around and waved at him. He gave a mild wave back.

A couple minutes later she came over carrying both of their drinks with a smile on her face. "I told you, there is nothing to worry about. To Aberforth business is business. He doesn't mind having you here at all."

"Did he know who I was?" he asked, taking his drink from her hand.

"Sort of," she said, looking back at the bartender. "He knew you were a Malfoy since you all kind of look alike. He assumed you were _that_ Malfoy but, like I said, you didn't kill anyone. He knows that." Draco remained silent. Hermione kept her eyes fixed on him as she took a sip of her drink. "Draco, I never asked you this before, but you _do_ know Professor Dumbledore was dying, right?"

"What?" he asked, nearly choking on his sip.

"Yes, he was dying. That's why he told Snape to kill him. He knew his life was lost anyway, and he wanted to save your soul."

"How was he dying?" he asked, his hands shaking.

"He got a little too hasty with one of the Horcruxes. It cursed him. Surely even you noticed his hand in that last year."

"I … never really thought about it," he said honestly. "There were other things on my mind that year."

"I really wish someone had told you," said Hermione, putting her hand on top of his. "I don't know if it offers you any solace, but I thought you should know."

"Dragon."

"W-what?" asked Hermione.

"Dragon," he repeated, pushing her hand off of his and getting up from his seat. "I want to go. You can stay if you want, but I'm leaving."

Draco darted for the door. Hermione stared after him stunned for a minute before getting up and following him out. He was already well down the street before she caught up with him. "Draco, what's wrong?" she asked, grabbing onto his arm as she reached him.

He pushed her off. "Nothing. I just want to go back to the tent. I'm tired."

"Stop lying to me!" she screamed. Draco stopped walking and turned around, catching Hermione's flaming eyes with his. She stormed up to him. "You basically told me yesterday that you want something more here, but how can we do that if you're not honest with me? If you want more then I want more. Tell me the truth, Draco. Why did you get so upset back there? It's been three years; it's time for you to start facing your demons!"

"I can't do that, Hermione."

"Why not?"

"Because I can't!"

"Oh no you don't, Draco Malfoy!" she yelled, holding one stern finger in his face. "If I'm not allowed to be vague in my answers then neither are you! Tell me the truth! Why can't you just let it go?"

"Because …" Draco paused, looked straight into her beautiful eyes and prepared himself for the hate that would soon follow. Then, with a sigh, he said, "Because I think I would have done it."

"What?" she asked, lowering her finger.

"I think I would have killed Dumbledore. If Snape hadn't shown up when he did I probably would have done it."

Hermione kept her eyes on him as he spoke, no signs of judgment, no signs of hatred, just blankness.

"You don't understand, Hermione. Sure, he promised to keep my family safe, but how was I supposed to know if he could actually do that? Several Death Eaters had shown up and were telling me to do it. I was afraid. I'd already disarmed him. How was he supposed to help me? _I_ couldn't even help me."

"Draco … I -"

"Please don't look at me anymore," he said, turning away from her. "I didn't want to tell you because I knew you would hate me, but that's the reality. I would have done it. I know I would have. Even knowing Dumbledore was already dying doesn't make me feel any better about it. A man would've died by my hand. How could I live with myself? How could I -"

Draco never got the chance to finish. Hermione had pulled him back towards her and wrapped her arms around him. Her head rested on his chest while he burrowed his into her neck, his own arms reluctantly wrapping around her waist.

"Draco Malfoy, don't be an idiot. I could never hate you … well, again, anyway. I'm pretty sure I hated you before."

Draco chuckled into her hair, a few stray tears escaping his eyes.

"So what would you have done before the Death Eaters showed up?"

"What?" he asked while turning his head so his voice wasn't muffled by her shoulder.

"If the Death Eaters hadn't shown up on the top of the Astronomy Tower, would you have taken Dumbledore's deal?"

"I-I don't know."

Hermione smiled into his chest. "Well, if it's any consolation, I think you would have. You're not evil, Draco. You were just a young boy in a bad situation. Anyone would have considered it."

"You wouldn't have."

Hermione shook her head. "I don't think that's true. If I felt like my family was being threatened I just might have. It's hard to say since I'm Muggle-born and all. I never would have been in that situation. You-Know-_Who_ would never have had me."

Draco chuckled joylessly. "You're lucky."

Hermione looked at the arm that was wrapped around her, all signs of the Dark Mark hidden beneath it. She frowned. "I'm sorry I made you go in there. Let's go back to the tent and I'll make tea. I think that's the only drink we need right now."

Draco nodded and released her from his arms. As they walked through town he did not object to Hermione linking her arm through his and snuggling up close to it. The truth was, he needed her close right now. There was a very good chance he was going to cave and sleep in the same bed with her that night, but only if she started it.

XXX

The next morning Draco woke up in the tent alone. Hermione left a note on the table saying she had to take care of a few things and she would meet him at Hogwarts later. Draco frowned down at the letter, not blind to the fact that it was no longer signed with love, or xoxo. As it turned out, Hermione hadn't slept in his bed last night after all. She didn't even try. After they had tea she tucked him in and gave him one last hug before going to her own bed. He was losing her. He knew he was.

Draco was too stressed to eat, so he quickly changed into his clothes and headed for Hogwarts. Maybe he'd be able to fog his mind of its millions of thoughts with studying.

It was a good two hours before Hermione showed up at the library. "Hi," she said with a shy smile.

"Hi," he said back, digging his nose even deeper into his book.

"Find anything new about the Undead Root?"

"Not really. Just something about it glowing a bluish-purplish color for the fifteen or so minutes it's out. I suppose we could always just wander around the Forbidden Forest at that time and try our luck."

"We'd have to be really _really_ lucky," laughed Hermione. "I think we'd better keep looking."

The two of them stayed in that library for the rest of the day, not even noticing how much time had flown until they heard someone's shoes clanking through the library, stop in front of their table and start tapping rapidly. They both looked up to see Professor McGonagall looking cross at them through her squared spectacles.

"The rumor floating around is that the two of you have not left this room _all_ day, even to eat! Now, I _know_ that must not be true."

"Is the day over already?" asked Draco, looking to the closest window. The sun was setting beyond it. "Oh, would you look at that."

"Uh, sorry Professor McGonagall. We'll get out of your hair straight away."

"You most certainly _will_ not. Both of you will accompany me to the Great Hall for a proper meal. _Now_!"

She didn't have to tell them twice. They tried to put their books away but Professor McGonagall wouldn't hear of it.

"You're just going to pull them right back out tomorrow. Might as well keep them there and save yourselves the trouble."

"I like the new you, Professor. So relaxed," said Draco with a wink.

"Don't you try and use your charm on me, Mr. Malfoy. I assure you, it will not work." Draco and Hermione both noticed the faint smirk on her lips. They looked at each other and giggled.

That first step into the Great Hall was an intense one for Hermione and Draco. The last time they had been in here was just after the war. The dead and injured had been scattered all around, so many lives destroyed in one horrible battle. It was hard to look at this room now, even though it was completely restored, without seeing the ghosts of all that had fought and died here. Neither were blind to the fact that several more _actual_ ghosts lingered here now that were never around during their time at school. Victims of the war, most likely.

Dinner that evening was … interesting, to say the least. Hermione caught up with her favorite professors, but Draco was becoming more and more aware that his favorite was no longer here. Hagrid talked to him for a while, saying he got a very nice owl from Grawp that morning absolutely praising Draco.

"Your brother is a great … Gurg," he said, hoping he got the title right.

"Yeah, he is. Was a little reluctan' bout lettin' 'im go back when he asked, but yeh gotta let 'em make their own mistakes, yeh know?"

"Yeah, I do," said Draco, staring down at his pumpkin juice.

"Don' do it, Malfoy."

"What?" he asked, finally looking up and over at the large man.

"Don' take her away from 'im. Maybe yeh have changed, but yeh're still no good fer her."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yeah yeh do," said Hagrid, taking a long sip of his mead. He didn't say anything more to him for the rest of the night.

Hermione and Draco excused themselves from dinner before everyone else. They were walking back to the library when Hermione caught sight of the corridor leading towards the dungeons. She stopped and stared down it. Draco stopped a few steps in front of her and turned around.

"What are you looking at?" he asked, following her eyes down the hall.

"Draco, would you … show me the Slytherin dormitories?"

Draco laughed. "Only if _you_ show me Gryffindor's."

"Alright," said Hermione, walking forward.

Draco's face dropped. "What?"

"I said alright, Draco. I'll show you mine if you show me yours, right?" she said with a wink.

"But I don't actually _want_ to see Gryffindor's dormitories. I was only bluffing."

"Oh, come on, Draco. Haven't you ever been curious to see what it's like?"

"No."

"You're lying," she said with a smile.

"Am not!"

"Yes you are. Come on." Hermione grabbed him by the hand and started pulling him towards the Gryffindor Tower. "Now, if you're good maybe I'll even tell you the story of when Harry and Ron disguised themselves as Crabbe and Goyle and _you_ let them into your common room."

"Wait … _what_?"

"Ah, ah, ah! I said only if you're good."

Draco didn't object again as she led the way up to the seventh floor of Hogwarts. By the end of it he was panting. "Merlin, Hermione, did you really climb all of these stairs every day? How was it that Longbottom still held on to all of that extra weight?"

"Please don't insult Neville, Draco. He's a very dear friend of mine."

"Can you honestly say that Longbottom has never said anything bad about me?"

"Well, no," said Hermione. "But, to be fair, I've said my fair share of bad things about you as well. As I'm sure you have of me."

"Absolutely," he said with a wink.

Hermione rolled her eyes before walking up to a portrait of a Fat Lady and saying, "Good evening. I am told we don't need a password to enter."

"Yes, you are quite right," said the Fat Lady, looking skeptically at Draco. "I remember you, but I'll be damned if I remember him. Was he a Gryffindor?"

"Uh … yes!" said Hermione a bit too enthusiastically. "He's actually older than he looks, a good ten years ahead of me."

"What -"

"_Surely_ you remember him. He was a tiny little thing, no bigger than a first year all the way until he graduated. It wasn't until he was in his twenties when he finally hit a growth spurt."

"HEY -"

"Oh, yes. _Of course_ I remember you. How silly of me," laughed the Fat Lady. "So wonderful to see the two of you again. Please, take as long as you need."

The portrait opened, revealing a circular hole behind it. Draco looked through it uncertainly before Hermione grabbed him by the hand and pulled him along. "Honestly, Draco, you act like this is the ultimate taboo or something."

"Well, it kind of is," said Draco. "If any Slytherin ever found out I came up here they'd slaughter me."

"It's a good thing they're only going to find out if you tell them," she smiled. "Now, come on."

He followed her the rest of the way through, eventually entering a circular room with lots of squishy armchairs, tables and tapestries. A large fireplace took over one of the walls and the entire room radiated a golden glow. He wasn't going to lie, it was beautiful. But it was no Slytherin house.

"What do you think?" asked Hermione, sinking into one of the armchairs by the fireplace, which was currently blazing.

Draco walked over to one of the windows and looked out at the grounds. "Not bad. A little too scarlet and gold for my taste, but I can see its appeal. What are the dormitories like?"

"Want to see my old room?" asked Hermione coyly.

"Absolutely," said Draco, his head already flooding with fantasies of him seducing Hermione on the bed she slept in while a student.

Hermione jumped out of her chair and darted for one of the spiral staircases on the side of the room. She ran up it and Draco tried to follow her, but before he even reached the first floor the entire staircase collapsed into a slide and carried him all the way back down to the common room. He could hear Hermione giggling from inside the tower.

"Oh, yeah. I forgot about that. No boys allowed. Sorry." A moment later she was coming down the slide with the biggest smile on her face.

"Somehow I doubt that," he said, holding out a hand and helping her up.

When on her feet, Hermione leaned up and gave Draco a tender kiss on the lips. When she pulled away she looked into his eyes and said, "I know I'm not supposed to do that, but I just had to get one in while here. I'd say kissing a Slytherin in the Gryffindor common room is even more taboo than just being here, wouldn't you?"

Draco chuckled before grabbing her and kissing her again. "I'll say. I kind of like it."

"I knew you would." She gave him one more peck on the lips before pulling him towards the exit. "Come on. It's time for you to show me _yours_."

"I can show you mine right now if that's all you want."

Hermione rolled her eyes. Sometimes he could be so vulgar. If Ron said something like that to her she would not hesitate to smack him. _How_ was this working on her?

Hermione dragged Draco all the way to the dungeons before letting him take the lead. She admittedly knew the general location of the Slytherin dormitories, but not the exact location.

They eventually stopped in front of a wall. Draco stared at it blankly for a moment before pushing it and revealing a heavy stone door. "I've never done this without a password before. I guess it just opens."

Draco held the door open and let Hermione walk through before carefully closing it behind them. He still couldn't believe he let her talk him into this. But when he saw the delight on her face as she stared wide-eyed at the Slytherin common room, he forgot all about his skepticism and started to enjoy this.

"It's far less creepy than I expected," she said, running her hands along one of the high-backed chairs. "But Gryffindor's common room is much cozier. How am I supposed to cuddle up on one of these things?"

Draco sat down on the chair she was stroking and pulled her onto his lap. Cradling her in his arms, he gave her a long, passionate kiss. When he pulled away he smiled and said, "Cozy enough for you."

Hermione laughed. "This would _still_ be better in an armchair."

Climbing out of his lap, Hermione went over to the fireplace and started examining the mantelpiece. "I like this," she said. "It's much more elaborate than ours. I suppose this whole room is, dare I say, _classier_ than the Gryffindor's."

"Now you're getting it, Mione," he said, climbing out of his chair and taking a good look around the room he used to spend so much time in.

"Can I see your old room?" asked Hermione, who was suddenly beside him.

"I never got to see yours," laughed Draco.

"That's only because a magical charm is in place to make sure you don't."

"I'm sure boys have gotten up there before," he said.

Hermione smiled. "Of course they have, but you have to really have the drive and determination to do it."

"Are you saying I don't have drive?" he asked.

"I'm _saying_ you didn't try."

"You came back down only a moment later. Why would I be motivated to go up there if the prize was already with me?"

"That's sweet," said Hermione. "I think." She grabbed his hand. "Now, show me your room."

Draco led Hermione through a door on the far end of the common room. They walked down a long hallway covered in windows that showed them views beneath the lake. Hermione gasped as a grindylow floated by, grabbing onto Draco's arm as it showed off its green teeth.

Draco laughed. "Really Hermione, you've gone up against dragons, giant spiders, vampires, and dementors, but a _grindylow_ behind a sheet of magical glass scares you? What do you think it's going to do, press itself up against the window and make faces at you?"

Hermione smacked his arm. "Oh, ha ha. I'm not afraid of it attacking me. It's just creepy."

"I'm used to them," said Draco, now leading her down a staircase at the end of the hall. They went down two flights before he pulled her into a room and said, "Here we are."

Hermione took a good look around the room he had brought her in. It was longer and thinner than the Gryffindor dormitories, and emitting the same emerald light as the common room. There were two windows on either side of the room accented with dark green curtains that were currently drawn back, revealing a much more beautiful part of the Great Lake, decorated with a forest of sea plants and schools of colorful fish.

Hermione's eyes darted back and forth between five cushy four poster beds, each decorated with their own green or silver curtains for privacy. "Can I guess which one was yours?" she asked.

Draco smiled. "Guess away."

Hermione looked pensively at each bed for a moment before pointing to the one near the window on the right. "That one."

Draco raised his eyebrows. "Why that one?"

"Well, I think we can assume you shared a room with Crabbe and Goyle, who I'm sure were both more than willing to give you your first pick. You would have chosen one near a window, since that is considered ideal, and I prefer the colors on this one; green bedspread with silver curtains. It's better than the opposite by the other window. Plus, the curtains are a bit sheer, so you could see out if you wanted to. My guess is you were as nosy then as you are now. You always wanted to know what was going on."

"Are _you_ actually calling _me_ nosy? I'm offended, Hermione."

"Am I right?" she asked, a smug look on her face.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Of course you are. Though, I doubt all of that went through my mind when I chose it, other than the window thing. Zabini took the one on the other side as soon as I picked mine, so I didn't get a chance to debate switching. But I agree. These colors _are _better."

Hermione walked over to Draco's old bed and stared at it for a minute. Her hands kept fidgeting. Draco eyed them curiously. She seemed nervous about something.

Then, Hermione grabbed Draco by the arm and threw him onto his bed. "Stay there for a minute," she said, pulling the curtains down.

"Hermione, wha -"

"Stay there!" she shouted again as his hand moved to open the curtains. He quickly pulled it back, but still tried to stare through the sheer material at what Hermione was doing on the other side. Unfortunately, she had moved out of view. Several minutes later her silhouette reappeared and she said, "Okay, you can come out now."

Draco pulled back the curtains. "Merlin's beard!" He was shocked to find Hermione standing in the middle of the room, wearing nothing but a Slytherin green negligee. "Are you trying to seduce me, Mione? Because, if you are, it's working."

"I suppose I am," said Hermione, walking uncomfortably towards him. "But I'm not doing this just because you've barely touched me over the past two days. I've had some time to think and I finally see what you were talking about. All of these secrets are not healthy. So …" She let out a heavy sigh, causing her breasts to bounce in the small outfit. Draco had a hard time looking anywhere else. "I'm going to tell Ron at the end of the summer. I'd prefer to be the one to tell him, but if he finds out by some other means … oh well," she said, waving her hand nonchalantly. "If he really wants to marry me then he is just going to have to accept that this happened."

Draco suddenly recalled his conversation with Hagrid in the Great Hall at dinner. "Hermione, you didn't happen to tell Hagrid about this, did you?"

"Yes, I told him this morning," she said. "Why? Did he say something? Ugh, I told him not to say anything! I told you, the man can't keep a secret worth a damn!"

"He didn't tell me, Hermione," defended Draco. "Not in a way I understood, at least. I thought he was just speculating."

"Oh, okay," said Hermione, closing those last few gaps between them. "So … what do you think?" She blushed.

"Have you been wearing this all day?" he asked, playing with one of the straps on the negligee. "Because, if you have, you should have taken your clothes off much earlier."

"Yes," answered Hermione. "I bought it in town. My first sexy lingerie purchase. Does it look alright? I'm not really good at this whole seductress thing, but I thought you'd like the green."

"Oh, I think you're doing quite fine," said Draco, running his lips along her neck. "You really want to shag me in the Slytherin dormitories? I never thought you'd be into it."

Hermione giggled as he began to nibble on her ear. "Well, I knew _you_ would be. And I'd rather do it here than in _my_ dormitories."

"So that's why you came right back down the slide," laughed Draco as he ran his hands along the silky fabric. "You're very tricky, Granger. And maybe a little bit cunning."

Hermione laughed with him. "Guess I was sorted into the wrong house after all."

Finally meeting her mouth with his, Draco grabbed Hermione by the waist and pulled her onto the bed. He was surprised at how eager he was to get her out of that outfit when she looked so incredible in it. The negligee was already halfway over her head before he pulled it back on. It didn't have to be off for him to do what he wanted.

Hermione pushed him down onto the bed and kissed him heavily before pulling off his shirt and moving her tongue down his chest. Before long she had all of his clothes off and was positioning herself on top of him. Draco moaned as he tangled his hands in her hair, pulling her down so he could kiss her while she moved her hips with his.

He eventually flipped them over, staring deep into Hermione's eyes while her face exuded pleasure. She grabbed the back of his head and pulled him down to her, kissing him all the while, never wanting to let him go. She already knew when she had to at the end of the summer it was going to be hard. A part of her really cared about Draco, maybe even loved him, but, even now, Ron was never far from her mind. Still, she pushed all thoughts of him far back and focused on the here and now.

Her toes started to curl as she neared the end. She knew Draco was close by the way he bit at her lip while kissing her. They screamed out at the same time, Draco's body falling limp on top of hers. He caught his breath for a moment before rolling over and pulling her with him. Hermione lay there with her head on Draco's chest while his arm was wrapped securely around her body. She had always been surprised at how perfect the fit was. There was never any awkward cuddling between them. Somehow it always seemed to work.

"So you really want to do this?" whispered Draco.

Hermione nodded against his chest. "Yes, I do. I should have never tried to hide it in the first place. I've done nothing wrong."

"But what if Weasley doesn't see it that way?"

Hermione shrugged. "I guess that will mean it was never meant to be. Is it cold of me to say that?"

Draco shook his head. "No. Like I said before, marriages should be based on trust. If you can't be honest with him then he doesn't deserve you." Draco gulped. "And I think it's time I'm honest with you too."

Hermione looked up at him and asked, "Draco, are you sure? You don't have to if -"

"No, Hermione, I want to. I've been wanting to tell you this for a long time now."

"Then why haven't you?"

Draco shrugged. "I don't know. My pride I guess. You snooped so I wanted to punish you. I didn't do it intentionally."

"It's alright," said Hermione, scooting up so her head was level with his. "Tell me as little or as much as you want. Just know I'm here for you no matter what." She reached down and entwined her hand with his.

Draco gave it a squeeze before starting. "My father has been ill for quite some time now, but not physically ill. He became …" he sighed, "mentally ill shortly after the war. He's convinced that You-Know-Who is going to come back and punish our family for betraying him in the end. My mother's been trying to keep it hidden; sending me to work for him, refusing to take him to St. Mungo's, but over the last year his physical health has been deteriorating as well. He is literally killing himself with grief and there's nothing we can do about it.

"I've been … working hard to clear the Malfoy name. Even though we did not participate in the final battle our status has been seriously tarnished, but money and charity will only get you so far. I just … want to get my family some power back. Maybe if I do he will see that not all is lost and come back to us."

"But … why don't you want to see him?" asked Hermione, leaning her forehead against his temple.

"I don't know. I … I guess I just needed some time _not_ seeing him, you know?"

She nodded.

"It's hard watching someone you love wasting away day after day. I don't know how my mother does it. That's why when Mr. Ollivander asked me to come I didn't even hesitate to say yes. I needed to get away. I feel guilty about it every day."

"You shouldn't," said Hermione, kissing his cheek. "It's obvious you love your father. If the time comes for you to go back there then I'm sure Mr. Ollivander will get a message to you."

"Yes. He already knows about the situation. I confided in him a long time ago. It's sad, but I think the old man might be my only friend." Hermione gave him an icy stare. Draco laughed. "Besides you, I mean."

"If you want, when we get back I will gladly give those Slytherin's a stern talking to. It sounds like they could all use to gain a few manners."

"No," said Draco, shaking his head. "There's no need. I honestly don't think I'm missing very much. In school I had followers, not friends."

Hermione laughed. "I think it's a thin line. Now, come on," she said, sitting up and pulling him off the bed with her. "There's somewhere we need to go."

After they changed back into their clothes Draco made the bed while Hermione stared out the window at the giant squid, who was swimming by. She gasped as it stuck one tentacled leg to the glass. Draco came up behind her and tapped on it. The squid let go and swam on.

"He hates it when you do that," he said, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her neck. "Do we really have to go? It would be really fun to push you up against this glass and have my way with you while the giant squid watches."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You have the strangest fantasies. But, yes, we have to go. It's getting late and I need to take you one more place before we overstay our welcome."

Moving out of his clutches, Hermione walked to the door, turned around before opening it and said, "Maybe next time." She winked before leaving the room. Draco happily followed her out, grabbing onto her hand as the two of them walked through the Slytherin dormitories. He took one last look at the common room before Hermione pulled him through the exit and guided him back towards the front of the castle.

She stopped at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the Astronomy Tower. Draco stared up at the dark steps like they were infested with dragon pox, or something as equally grotesque.

"Why do we have to go up there?" he asked.

"Because you need to face your past, Draco. All of your fears are up there. It's time for you to conquer them. Now, come on," she said, taking a step forward.

Draco took one behind her. He held her hand as they slowly ascended the stairs together. When they got to the top Draco took a moment to catch his breath before walking into the place where he had once tried to kill a man. Hermione pulled him past where he had stood and over to where Dumbledore had gone over. He looked down and was half-surprised to not see the body still lying there, staring back at him.

"Is it as horrible as you thought it would be?" asked Hermione, looking over at him.

Draco shook his head. "No. It all looks fairly normal. Like it always did."

"You see? Nothing to fear." Hermione pulled him in and hugged him.

The two of them eventually cozied themselves against a wall at the top of the tower and stared up at the night sky. It felt great being up there together. Like nothing in the world could ever harm them.

Right around midnight Hermione noticed a strange light coming from the forest. She got up to investigate. "Draco, look!" she shouted.

Draco stood up from his place on the ground and joined Hermione at the edge. She was pointing at a faint bluish-purplish light glowing only a few yards into the forest. "The Undead Root," he said.

"Come on! We have to hurry!" Hermione grabbed his hand and took off running.

Within moments they were down the stairs, in the entrance hall, and out the door. They sprinted across the grounds and headed into the forest. Hermione had a great sense of direction and before long they were staring at a beautiful, glowing plant.

Hermione's eyes lit up at the sight of it. "It really is the root. I can't believe we are actually that lucky."

"Neither can I," said Draco, falling to his knees and digging around the plant. Hermione got on the ground and joined him. They were able to pull the root out by the base just as it began to recoil. They had won.

The Undead Root successfully in his hand, Draco laughed before looking at Hermione and grabbing her in a kiss. They stayed like that for a moment before eventually pulling away from each other and smiling. They got back to their feet and walked out of the Forbidden Forest with their arms wrapped around each other. Finally, the two of them could be one less forbidden thing lingering around in there. As of that night Hermione and Draco were no longer forbidden, they were legit.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: Thanks for all of the positive reviews! I'm glad everyone seems to be enjoying it so far.**

**Just to pre-warn everyone, the last month of their summer is going to go by a lot quicker than the first two, so this story might be finished sooner than you expect.**

**Thanks again and keep the reviews coming! ;-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The next morning Hermione and Draco woke up later than usual. When they had gotten back to their tent the night before and Hermione started to change her clothes, revealing the sexy green negligee underneath, Draco could hardly contain himself. They were up until nearly sunrise doing … various things. And then they woke up and did it again in the late morning. If nothing else, at least they had passion.

"Any chance I'll get my window fantasy today?" he asked while Hermione lay on top of him.

She laughed breathlessly. "I don't know where you get your stamina, Draco, but I'm exhausted. Besides, I think we should take a break from studying today and go check out all of the watering holes in the Forbidden Forest. Maybe we'll run into some unicorns along the way. We still need three more hairs, one being from that large mare he was talking about."

Before they left Hermione went through their overstuffed backpacks and took out everything but the essentials. She was getting tired of having to search for what she needed all of the time.

While going through Draco's she was once again confronted with the Muggle mop she had pulled out by accident in the desert. "Honestly, Draco, why do you have this thing in here? Did you put a flying charm on it or something to mix things up a bit?"

"No," said Draco, taking the mop from her and placing it carefully under the bed.

"What is it then?" she asked, more curious than ever.

"Ruskle gave it to me," he said, looking towards the kitchen where the house-elf was making them lunch for the road. "Ruskle, will you head into town and pick us up some candy before we go? I'd like some cauldron cakes and chocolate frogs. What do you want, Mione?"

"Oh, I don't know," she said. "Some sugar quills and licorice snaps would be nice."

"As you wish, Young Master." _Pop_!

As soon as he was gone Draco turned to Hermione and said, "Look, Ruskle doesn't know this but before I left I asked him to bring me something long and skinny and he brought me that. I'm not even really sure what it is."

"It's a _mop_, Draco." He stared at her blankly. "People use them to clean floors." Still nothing. "Honestly, I have never met anyone so sheltered in all my life," she said, crossing her arms. "So what did you need it for?"

"For this." He pulled the mop back out from under the bed and took off the top of it. He held his hand out while holding it upside down and caught something falling out of it. He handed the object to Hermione. She was surprised to find that it was a wand. "It's my fathers," he said. "I took it from his cane before I left. He's in no condition to try and use it and my mother wouldn't take it from him. I don't think she's noticed it's gone yet or else I would have heard about it."

Hermione frowned at the wand. "So your father's been mentally ill and your mother really didn't see a reason to take this away from him?"

"She's in denial," he said, taking the wand back from her and, once again, putting it inside the mop. "She likes to imagine he's only physically ill. It's never even crossed her mind that he might accidentally cause harm to himself. Or worse, to her. If I was leaving I needed to make sure she was safe."

"That's very sweet of you," said Hermione, helping him tuck the mop back under the bed.

By the time Ruskle got back their backpacks were clear and they were ready to go. Hermione stood by the table while the house-elf finished their lunches, staring down at the vial of Acromantula venom and the Muggle Ziploc bag with the Undead Root in it she had placed there.

When Draco came up behind her she asked, "Why do you think the owl hasn't taken either of these things? Did we get them wrong?"

"I don't think so," he said, biting the head off of a chocolate frog. "He probably just has another purpose for them. Maybe he needs all of the weird things on the list to come together. Hey look!" Hermione turned around only to end up staring directly at her own face. "Looks like I got your card, Mione. When did they add you in here?"

"About a year ago," said Hermione, taking the card from him and looking closely at it. She grunted. "For the record, I never approved this picture." She handed it back to him.

"Does that mean Potty and Weasel have cards too?" he asked. She nodded. Now Draco grunted. "Well, that's not fair. How am I ever supposed to get a complete set now?"

"You could just collect their cards, Draco. There's no rule that says you can't."

"Sure there is! It's called the pride rule."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I don't think their cards are going anywhere soon, so you might want to start looking for something new to collect."

"Well, at least I'll always have this one," he said, flashing her card at her again. "Maybe I'll just cut out a few extra Hermione's and put them over Potty and Weasel's photos."

"Lunch is ready, sir," said Ruskle, handing them a basket full of food.

Hermione packed it in her backpack. Then she and Draco said goodbye to the house-elf and headed for the Forbidden Forest. They stopped by Hagrid's cabin first to pick up Fang. The half-giant wasn't home, of course, but he had told them previously to come by and take his dog whenever they were going to head into the forest. Fang wasn't much use, considering he was a giant chicken and all, but he looked frightening enough that some of the forests inhabitants might think twice before attacking them.

There were five known watering holes in the Forbidden Forest, one they had searched the other day when they'd been with Hagrid. They were hoping to hit the other four that day, but with the late start they were getting it didn't seem very likely.

They had no luck at the first watering hole so Hermione crossed it off of her map. They decided to take the long way around to the second one, since the shortest route would take them right by the Acromantula nest. There was no need to press their luck.

On their way there Hermione caught sight of a few centaurs watching them. She marked off where they were on the map so they would know not to go any deeper into the forest if they came this way again. She wanted to make sure they didn't stomp on any toes - or hooves - while they were there.

Their search of the second watering hole was as unsuccessful as the first. Still, they decided this would be a good place to stop and have their lunch. It was already well into the afternoon and they hadn't had any breakfast. All Draco had had to eat was that one chocolate frog and Hermione hadn't had anything.

While sitting there eating, they were both surprised to see a pair of blank, white shining eyes moving through the forest. Before long the skeletal body and dragon-like face of a black, winged horse emerged from the trees and began to drink from the small body of water. Hermione knew what it was right away but Draco had no clue.

"What the hell is that thing?" he asked, automatically moving his hand towards his wand.

"I'll give you one guess," said Hermione. "We studied them in Care of Magical Creatures once, only you and I couldn't see them back then."

"Don't tell me that's one of those things that pulls the carriages?" he asked. Hermione nodded. "What were they called again?"

"Thestrals," she said. "I rode on one once before I could see them. It was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life."

"I can only imagine," said Draco, standing up so he could get a better look at the thing. "I guess this means we've both seen death now, doesn't it?"

"Unfortunately, yes," said Hermione, moving to stand beside him. "Do you remember the first death you ever saw?"

"Vividly," said Draco, remembering the horrorstruck face of Charity Burbage as she was tortured and killed by Lord Voldemort. "And every one thereafter."

"Same here," said Hermione, reaching out and grabbing hold of his hand. "We should get going. We still have a lot of ground to cover."

The two of them packed up their stuff and hurried along, Draco taking one last look at the skeletal creature before grabbing hold of Hermione's hand and moving on.

There was still no sign of the Skeleton Tree at the third watering hole, but on their way to the fourth and final one they ran across a herd of unicorns, two of which were the pair they had encountered the other day.

"Draco, look! That must be the mare Mr. Ollivander was talking about!"

She was right. Standing just beside the familiar mother unicorn and foal was an extraordinary female nearly twice the size of the others. Her brilliance was only rivaled by that of the large stallion standing beside her.

"Do unicorns have a king and queen? Because, if they do, I think we've found them."

Hermione looked through her backpack, and took out her camera and some spare pouches. Draco stayed back and held onto Fang while she slowly approached the unicorns. While she collected hairs from both the mare and the stallion, the foal caught sight of Draco in the trees and went galloping off to him. It rubbed against Draco's hand until he petted it willingly. The second largest stallion caught sight of this and started snorting.

"Careful Draco. I think that one is the father," said Hermione, motioning towards the irritated unicorn.

"It's not me doing this," he said. "For some reason this one just likes me."

"Maybe it's because you're both golden," she said with a wink.

Its eyes still fixed on Draco, the smaller stallion began to tread in the dirt. Draco tried to move his hand away from the foal, but the tiny unicorn kept nudging and licking it. "Stop that!" he said, swatting at the animal. This only infuriated the father more.

"Uh, Draco, I really think you should take a few steps back."

She didn't have to tell him twice. Draco was already moving far away from the foal, Fang hanging loyally at his side. The foal skipped after him. The stallion charged.

"AHH!"

"DRACO!"

Draco and Fang took off running, followed closely by the stallion, who was followed by the foal, who was followed by Hermione.

The foal, who thought they were playing, pulled ahead of its father and began neighing as it galloped along with Draco. Fang had already disappeared deep into the trees.

While Hermione tried to be frightened for Draco, she couldn't help but see the humor in all of this, making sure to snap a few pictures of the blonde wizard running from the rampaging unicorn.

"Oh look, Draco! The unicorn dropped a tail hair! That makes five!" she yelled joyfully as she grabbed the hair that had snagged on a pointy bush, putting it carefully in a pouch with one of the chasing photos while she continued to run after them.

Eventually the foal got a little too excited and moved in too close to Draco, causing him to trip and tumble over its feet. The father reached him and bucked him once in the chest, sending him flying into a tree, before turning around and trotting back to its herd. The foal gave a wounded Draco a lick on the cheek before following after its father.

"Oh, Draco, are you alright?" asked a worried Hermione as she finally reaching him. Draco couldn't talk. He could barely even breathe. "I think he might have broken a few of your ribs. _Brackium Emendo_!"

Draco immediately started to feel better. Letting out a sigh, he fell even lower against the tree he had collided with. "Did I really just get pummeled by a unicorn?"

"You did," said Hermione with a smile.

"The most pure and innocent creature in the known world actually saw a reason to chase me down and attack me. If this isn't karma I don't know what the bloody hell is."

"Karma for what?" asked Hermione.

"You already know, Mione," he said, rubbing at his still bruised chest.

"No, I don't," she said sternly. "This was just a random unfortunate event. There is no such thing as karma. You understand me?" Draco smiled at her and nodded. "Good." She leaned in and gave him a kiss. "Now, get up. We need to find Fang before it gets dark."

"I guess it doesn't look like we'll be getting to that last watering hole today," he said, climbing to his feet.

"No," she said, taking out her map and marking off where they found the unicorns. "But at least we got all of the unicorn hairs. Now the only thing left on our list is the Skeleton Tree's bark, and our week isn't up for another three days. We have plenty of time."

"Maybe we shouldn't find it so quickly," he laughed. "It's nice not having to travel for once."

"Well, if we do find it quickly I'm sure Mr. Ollivander will just give us something else to look for. He did say he might be adding to the list. Remember?"

"Unfortunately, I do."

The two of them wandered through the forest calling Fang's name. The boarhound was nowhere to be found. It wasn't until nearly dark when they heard barking echoing around them.

"FANG!" they called together one last time.

Seconds later, the dog came barreling through the trees. He jumped onto Draco and knocked him over. "Easy boy. I'm still recovering from wounds caused by the last harmless creature that attacked me."

"What is that in his mouth?" asked Hermione, moving in closer. She gasped. "It's a bone! Oh Merlin, please tell me he didn't eat anything while we lost him!"

"I doubt that," said Draco, taking the object out of Fang's mouth.

"DON'T TOUCH IT! You don't know where it's been!"

"Relax Mione. It's not a bone. It's just a branch. See?" He held it out for her to get a closer look.

"Oh," said Hermione, taking the branch from his hands. "_Oh_!" she said again, this time more comprehendingly. "Draco, this is a _branch_ that looks like a _bone_. Do you know what this means?"

"Skeleton tree," he said with a smile. He had already gotten there quite some time ago.

"Exactly! Fang, take us to the place where you got this!" she said, holding the branch out to the dog. He just stared at it blankly. "Oh fine you useless animal."

"What did Fang ever do to you, eh?" asked Draco, giving the dog a rub on his ears.

Hermione didn't even hear him. "He came from over there," she said, pointing. "But his bark sounded like it was more over there." She moved her finger forty-five degrees to the right.

"But this place echoes all funny," said Draco, climbing back to his feet. "I say we head in the direction he came from."

"Yes, and I can cast a water detection spell since we're nowhere near the last known watering hole. We should have suspected it would be somewhere unfamiliar. Otherwise there would be more information on it."

Hermione cast her spell which, indeed, pointed them in the direction Fang had come from. Within minutes they came upon a swamp-like pool, and there, growing in the marsh, was a leafless tree with white, bone-like branches. The base of the tree did resemble the form of a man, but overtime it had become dense and wild, leaving great doubt that it was ever human. Unlike the tree in the desert, which still resembled a woman centuries later.

"Do you think the legend was true?" asked Hermione while Draco stripped off some bark.

"No," he answered. "I think it's just a creepy tree with a funny shape. It only takes one person's vivid imagination to make a story. Do you think we should grab a branch for as well?"

"I don't see why not," she said, pulling out a knife and cutting one of the wild branches off. "We have what we need. We should get back before it gets even darker. _Lumos_!"

Draco nodded. He'd had more than enough of the Forbidden Forest for one day.

XXX

The next morning Mr. Ollivander's owl swooped in and dropped a letter on a sleeping Hermione and Draco. Then it proceeded to take the unicorn hairs and branch from the Skeleton tree Hermione had left on the table for it, but didn't pick up the Acromantula venom, Undead root, or the bark of the Skeleton tree.

Hermione looked over at the items and frowned. She didn't like that she was missing something here. Draco already had the letter open and started reading it aloud:

_Ms. Granger and Mr. Malfoy,_

_ I applaud your efforts in the Forbidden Forest. You have found every item on my list even quicker than I anticipated. Be that as it may, I still need the two of you to stay in the area and collect a couple more things for me. Please see below for your list._

_Thank you,_

_Ollivander_

_P.S. Any luck on your research, Ms. Granger?_

_1. Tentacle from a Giant Squid_

_2. Hair from a three-headed dog_

"Is he serious?" said Draco, staring wide-eyed at their new list. "At this point I'm starting to believe the old man has a death wish for us or something."

"Hagrid can help us with the three-headed dog hair," said Hermione, climbing out of bed and walking over to the table, where she continued to stare at the untouched items. "Draco, do you think he's trying to tell us something?"

Draco got out of bed and joined her by the table. "Like what?"

"Well, so far my research on how to extract a dragon's heartstrings has come up pretty dry, but what if I'm looking in the wrong place?"  
>"How so?" he asked.<p>

"I've been searching for spells to cast, but what if what we need isn't a spell at all?"

Finally catching on, Draco took a good look at the items they'd collected. "You mean what if it's a potion?"

"Exactly! Mr. Ollivander didn't add that P.S. for no reason. He knows what we're doing and he's pushing us somewhere."

"I think you may be on to something, Mione," said Draco, picking up the venom and wincing at it. "If you look for a potion with these properties you just might find what we're looking for."

"And the giant squid tentacles, but there's a chance the hair is for him so we should probably disregard that one for now."

"To the library!" said Draco, holding one triumphant finger up in the air. Then, glancing sideways at Hermione, he added, "And then maybe the Slytherin dormitories to fulfill a poor wizards fantasy."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "_Only_ if we have time. Business first."

"Well, that's no fun," he said pulling her close and running his hands all along her body.

Hermione pushed him off of her. "Get dressed, Draco."

Draco grunted before obeying.

It was raining that day, so the two of them put on cloaks before running to Hogwarts. When they arrived they were soaked from head to toe, and both had to use hot-air charms to dry themselves off.

Filch appeared out of nowhere and cursed at them for dripping water in the entryway.

"You see, Draco, this is where a Muggle mop would come in handy," mocked Hermione as she used the hot-air coming out of her wand to dry the floor.

Even though they had cleaned up their mess, Filch still felt the need to scream at them while they continued on to the library.

The two of them researched for hours, reading any and every book to do with potions and dragons with little to no luck. If they wanted to declaw a dragon, make its tongue purple or make it tap dance they were set, but they needed none of those things - though, Draco did give a pretty good case in favor of the tap dancing potion, but eventually lost to Hermione's argument on unnecessary absurdity.

By the late afternoon Draco was too busy using his wand to cut Hermione's head out of one of his chocolate frog cards and pasting it on top of the Potter card he got to even think about studying. Hermione was nervously chewing on a sugar quill and watching him.

"Is that really necessary, Draco?" she said, more flattered than offended.

"Absolutely," he answered. "Any luck over there?"

Hermione frowned down at her books. "No. This isn't working. I think we should go and see if Professor Slughorn is available. Maybe he'll know something."

"Alright," said Draco, flashing his finished product at her. He had gotten it so Hermione's head moved in sync with the body below it.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "It's really creepy the way you put _my_ head on _his_ body. If you were going to do that why didn't you just cut all of me out?"

"Well, I had to have some way of distinguishing your card from his, didn't I?"

"How about the name 'Harry Potter' at the bottom, and all of the facts about him? Was that not distinguishing enough?"

Draco narrowed his eyes at her. "Well played, Granger. Shall we go then?" he asked while standing up.

Hermione did the same, and the two of them walked out of the library and toward Professor Slughorn's office. Somewhere along the way Draco grabbed Hermione's hand, and when they passed and smiled at Professor Flitwick he dropped all of the books he was carrying and nearly tumbled over. Hermione helped him pick everything up before grabbing back onto Draco's hand and continuing to Professor Slughorn's office.

When they arrived Professor Slughorn was currently taking inventory of all of his ingredients. Apothecary bottles and jars in every shape and size were scattered all around the small space, leaving barely any room to move.

Professor Slughorn was too caught up in his work to notice them at first, so Draco, who was standing behind Hermione, reached over her and knocked on the door. The professor's head jerked up immediately. When he saw Hermione his eyes lit up.

"Ah, Ms. Granger. How wonderful of you to come and see me. I heard a rumor you were around."

"Uh, yes, how are you Professor Slughorn?" asked Hermione, taking a careful step into the classroom.

"I have been wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. It feels great to be teaching again. Who is that you've got with you?"

Draco took a very small step into the classroom so Professor Slughorn could see him. "You remember Draco Malfoy, Professor?" said Hermione.

"Oh … yes, of course," said Slughorn, looking far less interested in the fellow Slytherin than he did in the brainy Gryffindor. It seemed his bigotries had not changed. Another perfect example of how the Malfoy family name had fallen.

"Yes, well, currently Draco and I are working on a project together. We are searching for the makings of a very rare potion, but all we have to go by is a few rumored ingredients. Could you help us?"

"Of course!" beamed Slughorn. "What are the rumored ingredients?"

"Well … we have Acromantula venom, an Undead root, bark from the -"

"Ah! Stop right there! I think I have _exactly_ what you need."

Slughorn got up from his seat on the ground and tiptoed through the scattered bottles of ingredients to his bookshelf. He scanned it for several minutes before pulling out a book and tossing it to Hermione. She stumbled with it, but luckily Draco reached out and caught it before it could hit the ground and smash anything.

Draco looked at the book and read the title, "_101 Uses for Undead Root_."

"It's a rare ingredient," said Slughorn. "Not used for many things. Whatever it is you need, I assure you, if it is not in that book it does not exist."

"Thank you Professor!" said Hermione excitedly before taking the book from Draco and leaping out of the classroom. She quickly whipped back around. "Oh! I almost forgot! Do you perchance have any Gillyweed we could use?"

"I believe there is some in that jar just to the left of Mr. Malfoy's foot there."

Draco reached down and grabbed a clear jar stuffed full of a slimy substance that slightly resembled rat tails, only more green.

"Going swimming, are you?" asked Slughorn.

"Uh … something like that," answered Hermione. "We'll get out of your hair now. Thank you again for your help, Professor. We really must catch up soon."

"Perhaps you will come to dinner again tonight. I was awfully sorry to hear I missed you before."

"Maybe. We'll see how this goes first," she said, holding up the book.

Draco carefully stepped out of the classroom and the two of them waved at Professor Slughorn before hurrying back to the library. On their way there they stole a quick kiss at the bottom of the stairwell, only to be disrupted by the sound of glass shattering. They both whipped around to see Professor McGonagall and Professor Sprout staring wide-eyed at them. Their mouths were agape and a pile of broken pots rested at their feet.

"Good day, Professors," said Draco before a blushing Hermione grabbed him by the hand and pulled him up the stairs.

"Pomona, quick, tell me, has the world _actually_ turned upside-down or are my eyes on backwards?"

"I'm afraid it's upside-down, Minerva. Your eyes are as upright as mine."

"Well, _that_ was embarrassing," said Hermione, taking her usual seat in the library.

"Why?" asked Draco. "We're not their students anymore. They can't give us detention for snogging in the hallway."

"But they're _still_ authority figures. I don't know about you, but I prefer to keep my public displays of affection to a minimum, _especially_ in front of my former professors."

"Fine, fine. We'll be more careful next time," he said, grabbing her face and pulling her in for another kiss. Several books dropped to the ground. "_Really now_?"

They both turned to see a wide-eyed Madam Pince looking as sunken and distasteful as ever. "What is this? _Food_ in the library?"

Hermione and Draco looked down at the chocolate frog wrappers they had accidentally left out. They had become careless since Madam Pince hadn't shown herself until now, thinking she wasn't around.

"Uhh …"

"_And_ you made me drop my books! _How dare you_!" she said, pointing an accusing finger at them. "GET OUT! GET OUT NOW!"

Hermione and Draco were already gathering their things when Professor McGonagall walked up behind Madam Pince and said, "Put your things back down. You're not going anywhere. For Merlin's sake, Irma, it's summer. What are you doing in here?"

"I heard the library had been used by two inconsiderate, depraved guests who _actually_ had the audacity to leave books out _all_ night. How do you sleep knowing what you have done?"

"And _who_ told you about _that_?" asked McGonagall sharply.

Madam Pince turned stone stiff. "Uhh …"

"Argus Filch is the culprit, I am sure. But, for your information, Irma, I gave Ms. Granger and Mr. Malfoy here permission to leave those books out all night. I have also encouraged them to eat while here since they have taken it upon themselves to stay cooped up all day _without_ breaks. Please, leave them be."

Pince opened her mouth to argue, but quickly shut it when she saw the gleam in McGonagall's eyes. After picking up her books, Pince shot them one last harsh look before moving on.

Once she was gone, Professor McGonagall looked to Hermione and Draco and said, "It doesn't look like the rain is going to die down anytime soon. I will _expect_ the two of you to come down to dinner in an hour's time. Afterwards, if the weather still has not cleared up, we will discuss boarding arrangements. Understand?"

"Yes Professor," they both said in unison.

Professor McGonagall nodded at the two of them before leaving the library. As soon as she was gone Hermione and Draco took out _101 Uses for Undead Root_ and started scanning through the various potions, all too aware of Madam Pince's head snooping around the corner ever two to five minutes.

"Draco, this is it!" shouted Hermione when they were nearly at the end of the book. Madam Pince shushed them from around the corner. "No wonder we couldn't find anything on it! It says nothing about dragons in here at all. It is simply called an Extraction Potion. It is mainly used by healers to remove things like small tumors and kidney stones. It says nothing bigger than a golf ball, but how big can a heartstring be really?"

"I've always imagined it as a glowing piece of string no wider than a hair."

"Same here," said Hermione, scanning over the ingredients. "This looks really tricky but I don't think it's anything we can't handle. You and I were the top two students in our class, and I'm assuming you got an O on your O.W.L.'s since you continued on. I think Harry and Ron were the only ones to get in on a technicality."

"Yes, I got an O. Potions was always my best subject."

"Good! Then it will be easy as pie!" Suddenly, the chocolate mousse incident entered Hermione's head. "Uh, maybe not if you're making it. Let's say easy as Arithmancy."

"Arithmancy isn't easy, Mione. How about easy as flying?"

"And you think flying is easy? I can barely sit on a broom without falling off."

"You've gotten much better," he said smiling.

"Only slightly," she said, kissing him on the cheek. "Easy as a cheering charm?"

"I always overdid those. How about easy as this?" He leaned in and gave her a tender kiss. When he pulled away Hermione was smiling at him.

"Well, it's a bit cheesy, but I suppose it will have to do."

After cleaning up all of their books, Hermione and Draco left the library and headed down to the Great Hall for dinner. Over their meal they planned strategy. The potion would take two days to make so they needed to start immediately. Both the giant squid tentacle and the three-headed dog hair were needed for it, so they would fetch those items first thing in the morning, in hopes of starting the potion by the afternoon. They also needed a troll hair, a Purple Polly flower, sap from a maple tree and a phoenix tear, but all of those ingredients did not needed to be added until near the end so they had some time.

Hermione and Draco already realized that the real challenge would not be making the potion, it would be feeding it to a dragon. The potion needed to be drunken to work, and after that a spell needed to be performed. No matter what, this was going to be a great challenge.

Hagrid had made a point not to speak to them during dinner but when Hermione asked him to take them into the forest in search of Fluffy he could not refuse. He told them he would meet them at the forests edge in the late morning, and then he left for bed, claiming to have a headache.

After dinner the weather was still horrible. This was reflected in the enchanted ceiling, which was currently decorated in swirling gray clouds. Professor McGonagall insisted that the two of them stay the night. They stayed up for a few more hours with the professors before being shuffled off to their old houses for bed.

Hermione felt rather lonely in her bed without Draco. She was just thinking about sneaking off to the Slytherin dormitories when her door opened. Within seconds Draco was across the room and on top of her.

"How did you get up here?" she asked, even though she really didn't care.

"Drive and determination," he answered with a wink.

Hermione pulled him in and kissed him hard. It is no surprise that within minutes she broke her rule about shagging in her own dormitories, but she found herself caring very little about that at the moment. Right now all she wanted to do was be close with Draco Malfoy. Since their time together was already cutting thin.


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Another long chapter. I should have split it, but I really like it as a whole. Enjoy!**

**P.S. Some familiar faces have returned :-D**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Draco sneaked back to his own room just before sunrise. When the two of them headed downstairs for breakfast they asked McGonagall if they could borrow swimsuits from the schools stock. She was reluctant to give some to them, since swimming in the lake was beyond forbidden, but eventually gave in. But she still insisted the two of them have supervision, so she sent Professor Sprout to keep her eye on them while they swam around.

It was a good thing Professor Sprout couldn't see what they were doing down there, since she definitely would not approve. Draco played bait for the giant squid while Hermione grabbed onto one of its swaying arms. It took several attempts, and the well part of their hour with the gillyweed, but eventually Hermione got a firm enough grip on the thing to cut off a tentacle while the squid chased Draco around, but she had to do it while holding on for dear life.

When they emerged from the lake Professor Sprout was busy inspecting some plant growing beside the water. She didn't notice them until they were practically beside her. She smiled. "Find what you need?"

"Yes," said Hermione, hiding the tentacle behind her back. "Thank you for letting us go in. I know it's not really allowed."

"Well, if it were up to me I never would have let you go, but the Headmistress seems to believe the two of you are capable of handling yourselves. Run into any grindylows while down there?"

"No," and thank Merlin, thought Hermione. She really didn't care for the creepy little creatures.

Hermione and Draco had just enough time to dry off before they had to meet Hagrid. He and Fang were already waiting by the forests edge when they arrived. You could tell how _not_ okay he was with seeing the two of them holding hands by the way he winced when he looked at them.

"Alrigh', let's get this over with."

Hermione frowned at Hagrid's animosity towards them. She wasn't used to not being the golden girl in his eyes. Or anyone's eyes really. She was always the golden girl.

"So how long has it been since you've seen Fluffy?" Hermione asked, trying to keep up with Hagrid while he trekked through the forest. Draco wasn't far behind her.

"Bout a year er so. Fluffy goes in pretty deep. Don' like the other creatures very much."

"So how exactly are we supposed to tame this 'Fluffy' well enough to get a hair? Does he respond to you?" asked Draco.

"Nope," said Hagrid. "The on'y way ter tame Fluffy is with music."

"And you _brought_ music, right?"

"Course I did! What d'yeh think I am, an idiot?"

Draco knew better than to touch that one.

"Hagrid, what happened to all of those apologies you said to Draco the other night? If you're going to be mad at someone it should be me."

"I am mad at yeh."

"_Only_ me, Hagrid.

"Fine, fine. Sorry fer snappin', Draco. It's nothin' personal. I know yeh're alrigh'. Grawp don' like jus anyone."

"It's fine," said Draco. "I'm not offended. Rude questions deserve rude answers."

They traveled through the forest for the better part of the day searching for Fluffy. Hagrid was a great tracker and taught them the signs to look for when searching for a giant three-headed dog. It was no surprise that it was much easier to track an animal as big as Fluffy than it was to find something small, like a rabbit.

The three-headed dog was finally located around two o'clock. He had his heads poking out while he lay down in a cave, making it look somewhat like a doghouse. Currently, all three heads were fighting over the remains of a giant bone. None of them could guess what sort of animal it came from.

Hagrid took out his ocarina and told Hermione and Draco to stay back with Fang. He then slowly approached Fluffy and started playing. At first the animal didn't hear the music and gnarled at Hagrid, but before long its six eyes became droopy and it collapsed, forgetting all about the bone.

Hermione ran forward while Draco hung back to hold onto Fang. The boarhound was quivering in fear and trying to make a break for his occupied master. Hermione slowly approached the sleeping three-headed dog and plucked several hairs from its leg, just to be cautious.

She was too busy putting the hairs securely in a flask to notice when Fang finally broke free of Draco's grip and charged for Hagrid. He knocked the half-giant over, sending his ocarina flying into the forest.

Fluffy woke up instantly. Hermione fell back as all three heads locked their eyes on her, each one baring its sharp teeth. She was about to scream when music began to play again and the heads collapsed.

She looked over to see Draco walking forward, playing a flute. He had transfigured it from a stick the moment Hagrid's ocarina went flying.

Hagrid got up from the ground and walked over to her at a hurried pace, grabbing her arm and pulling her to her feet. He shuffled her out of there while Draco followed them, continuing to play his flute. Hagrid made sure to keep a firm grip on Fang while Draco played. The dog kept looking back at him, wanting to wrestle.

"Alrigh' yeh two. We're almos' out o' range, and once we are we gotta run. Fluffy got our scent and 'e'll be lookin' fer us. Now, when I say go, go, okay?"

Hermione and the flute-playing Draco both nodded.

"Okay … GO!"

Draco kept a firm grip on his flute, just in case the three-headed dog caught up to them. They all took off running as fast as they could, none of them deaf to the rampaging animal behind them.

When he sounded really close Draco started playing again, which was really hard to do while running for your life. They heard the animal collapse maybe fifty feet behind them. They had to do this several times while leaving the forest, making their trip out much quicker than their trip in. Within an hour they were back at Hogwarts. They had successfully lost Fluffy about a mile back after the animal got tired of the chase.

Hermione and Draco said goodbye to Hagrid and Fang at their cabin before heading to the Hogwarts dungeons. They found Professor Slughorn, who was still taking inventory, and asked for permission to use his supplies to brew a potion. He was more than happy to assist them.

The two of them made themselves comfortable at one of the tables in their old classroom. Draco borrowed a silver caldron, silver ladle, and silver knife from Slughorn while Hermione readied all of their supplies. For some reason every object used to brew the potion needed to be made out of pure silver, except at the end. When the potion was finished they needed to pour it into phials using a golden ladle. Slughorn didn't have one of those for them to borrow so they would have to pick one up in town.

The first thing they had to do was boil water for thirty minutes, then they poured in the Acromantula venom, moving out of the way as a cloud of green smoke emerged. Once the cloud dissolved they had to turn the potion three times clockwise, then ten times counterclockwise. While Hermione did that Draco used the silver knife to cut the Skeleton tree bark into strips. Hermione stirred the potion once more clockwise, then Draco dropped in a strip of bark, then she turned once counterclockwise, and he dropped in one more piece. They did this until all of the bark was in the potion. Then they removed the ladle, dropped in the three-headed dog hair and continued to stir it with the silver knife.

After twenty minutes of stirring, Draco waved his wand over the potion and recited an incantation he had never heard before, but who was he to question the book. As soon as he was done a red cloud of smoke emerged from the cauldron. Once this smoke dissolved they had to drop in the giant squid tentacles. It disintegrated immediately.

"I'd hate to get some of that stuff on me," laughed Draco. Clearly they were making a very dangerous potion.

While the potion continued to brew they cut up the Undead root into twenty even pieces. If each one wasn't exactly the same mass as the others the potion would be ruined. Draco let Hermione take the reins on this part. Her perfectionism definitely came in handy sometimes.

Once the root was cut evenly they had to drop each piece in, one at a time. When the last piece hit the liquid a fragrant blue cloud emerged. This was the first one they didn't have to move away from, and also a vivid sign they had done everything correctly.

Now all they had to do was wait. They had to leave the potion boiling for forty-eight hours before adding all but one of the other ingredients. A phoenix tear didn't need to be added until right before bottling, so they had time.

Before Hermione and Draco left they spoke with Professor Slughorn about letting their potion boil. He agreed to leave it there untouched but, since a fire would be burning constantly, they needed to put some charms around the room to keep it from accidentally spreading. He would check on it both mornings while it boiled to make sure there were no problems.

Happy to have the potion started, Hermione and Draco headed back to their tent, where Mr. Ollivander's owl was waiting for them. Hermione took her letter from Ron and stared at the envelope for a good five minutes before stuffing it in her backpack, unopened. She didn't write him back. Draco felt very smug about the whole thing, but he decided to keep his gloating to himself. She was already visibly upset about it and he didn't want to distress her further.

Once the owl left the two of them ate a quick dinner and went to bed. Both of them were exhausted after the last couple of days. It was nice to be able to sleep in the same bed again without sneaking around, even though the idea of getting caught was a bit of a rush.

The next morning they woke up and immediately flew into the mountains to gather some Purple Polly flowers for their potion. Hermione grabbed a few dozen extras for Sophie, hoping that the owl would take them today since Ron wasn't the only one she didn't respond to yesterday.

After they got the flowers they returned to their tent and decided not to worry about the other ingredients until tomorrow. Both were exhausted and desperate for a day off.

Hermione and Draco spent the next several hours in bed together, only stopping when their stomachs started grumbling. Hermione went into the kitchen and started searching for something to eat, but they were currently lacking in supplies, and Ruskle hadn't shown up for the last couple of days.

"Did you want to go into town and get something?" asked Hermione, sitting back on the edge of the bed while Draco sat himself up.

"Sure," he said, leaning in and kissing her. This was one of those days he just couldn't get enough. "What did you have in mind? Someplace like Madam Puddifoot's?"

"There? Really?" asked Hermione.

Draco shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

"Well, I don't know how romantic you were with Parkinson in school, but you tend to only take girls to Madam Puddifoot's if you're on a date."

"So?"

Hermione looked at him curiously. "You … want to go on a date with me?"

"Uh, yeah Hermione. I told you it was all or nothing here and you chose all. Wouldn't you think that included dates?"

"I guess I never really thought about it. I mean, it's not like we've been on a date anywhere else."

"Well, if you don't want to -"

"NO! No, that's not what I meant. I want to. I really really do. But Madam Puddifoot's is a bit upscale, and I didn't pack for anything like that."

"Is that all?" laughed Draco. "Ruskle!"

_Pop_!

"You called, Young Master?"

Hermione, who was wearing nothing but her underwear, yipped and pulled the blanket over her. Draco was far less modest.

"Yes, Ruskle, I will need you to go out and fetch Hermione and me something nice to wear tonight. Nothing too fancy, just a slight step up from casual."

"As you wish, sir." _Pop_!

Less than ten minutes later Ruskle returned with a green dress for Hermione and some black slacks and a gray sweater for Draco.

"Looks sort of Mugglish," said Draco, holding up the sweater.

"I think it's lovely," smiled Hermione. "And it looks like I'm continuing with Slytherin colors."

"Nothing wrong with that," said Draco, already envisioning himself tearing Hermione out of that dress later.

"Thank you for your assistance, Ruskle," said Hermione to the house-elf.

"Yes, thank you," repeated Draco. "You are dismissed."

"As you wish, Young Master."

_Pop_!

Hermione and Draco both changed into their newly acquired clothes. While Hermione pinned her hair back Draco dug through his things for his heavier cloak, since he knew Hermione would be cold in nothing but the small dress.

When she was finally finished getting ready Hermione gave a little twirl for Draco and asked, "What do you think?"

Draco smiled at the vision and said, "You look ravishing, darling."

"Darling? I think I rather like that," said Hermione, pulling Draco in for a kiss.

Draco draped his cloak around his shoulders, and then a lighter one around his, before taking Hermione by the hand and leading her to Hogsmeade.

They walked into Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop and were immediately stripped of their cloaks by two fat, golden cherubs.

"Welcome to Madam Puddifoot's. How many are in your party?" asked a Hostess with cheeks as chubby as the cherubs.

"Uh, just the two of us," said Draco, looking all around the small shop. Neither he nor Hermione were blind to the fact that the place was even tackier than usual. "Is today some special occasion or something?"

"Why, yes, I am glad you asked!" said the hostess in an especially cheery voice. "Today is Madam Puddifoot's and her husband's seventy-fifth wedding anniversary, and they wanted to share their joy with the world!"

"Is Hogsmeade the world now?" laughed Draco. Hermione chuckled with him.

Without dropping her smile, the hostess said, "I don't get it."

Clearing her throat, Hermione said, "Could you please just show us to our seats."

"Absolutely! Right this way!"

She led them to one of the gaudy round tables in the dead center of the room. All around them couples were kissing and holding hands, their eyes sparkling every time a cherub tossed glitter over their table.

Before they even had a chance to look at their menus a cupid flew by and shot a little plastic arrow with a heart for the tip at Hermione. With a shriek, she leapt out of the way and into Draco's arms. The cupid looked satisfied enough and flew on.

Hermione shared a knowing look with Draco before returning to her seat and opening her menu. Draco did the same. The moment both of them were open they attracted to each other like magnets and became one larger menu built with appetizers, entrees, and desserts built entirely for two.

"What if a couple doesn't have the same tastes?" asked Hermione, frowning down at the menu.

"I guess that means it's not meant to be."

A cherub flew by and dropped several handfuls of red glitter over their heads before moving on. They looked at each other, laughed, and wiped the other free of sparkles.

"This place sure is tacky," said Hermione.

"And about to get tackier," said Draco, pointing.

Hermione followed his finger to where a large couple, who somewhat resembled giant slugs, was snogging in the corner while love birds circled and sang over their heads.

"Eww." Hermione crinkled her nose. "Some things are really not meant to be seen."

"I'd vomit, but I'm afraid it would all come out glitter."

"Or rainbows. I'm surprised we haven't seen a rainbow yet."

Just then, a tiny Pegasus flew by, trailing a rainbow that appeared to be coming out of its ass.

"Know what would be funny?" Hermione asked, scooting in closer to Draco.

"I'm not sure I know what funny is anymore. Once upon a time I would have said this place was funny, but now I just think it's scary."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Humor me, Draco."

He laughed and grabbed her hand on top of the table. "Okay, tell me. What would be funny?"

"It would be funny if we bought into this whole thing. You know, played along for the night."

"I have yet to see the 'funny'."

"Oh, come on schnookum wookums. That's a thing, right?"

Draco tilted his head back and laughed. "You bet it is gumdrop."

"So honeybuns, what do you want to order?" asked Hermione as she leaned forward and gave him Eskimo kisses.

They went on like this for the rest of the night, doing all of the disgusting relationship things that normally offended them. The surprising thing was, Draco and Hermione were finally starting to see why people liked being disgusting in public so much. It was fun. Of course, it probably would have been slightly less fun without their mocking undertone, but who were they to snip hairs?

The best part of it all was the nicknames. They made a point to always say a different one. That was, until dessert, when Draco ran out of ideas and accidentally called Hermione an Acid Pop.

"Acid Pop? What in Merlin does that mean?"

"Yeah, sorry about that. I was running out of kinds of candy and sort of panicked. At least I didn't call you Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans."

"What about jellybean?"

Draco thought about this. "Yes, I suppose that would have been better … uhh … chocolate frog?"

Hermione rolled her eyes before pulling Draco in for a kiss. When she pulled away she looked him in the eyes and said, "I guess this game's over, isn't it cuddle bear?"

"I think it is … umm, bunnykins."

"Oh no," said Hermione, holding up a stern finger. "I draw the line at bunnykins. Time for another game. Work with me, will you?"

"Wha -"

There was no time to ask questions. Hermione was already out of her seat and throwing her water into Draco's face. "How dare you cheat on me you insolent tub of gut!" Draco looked down at his stomach and frowned. "And with my identical, yet evil, twin sister? To think I thought we had something special!"

"Darling, you don't understand!" shouted Draco, rising to his feet. "I thought it was you lying naked in her bedroom."

"Then why did Alastair hear you scream _her_ name while the two of you were making love?"

"Alastair has been out to break us apart since the beginning! You're the only girl for me!" Draco reached out to grab Hermione but she hit him away.

"Don't touch me you fool!"

While Hermione's hands went wailing about, Draco grabbed a hold of her wrists, pulled her quivering body ridiculously close and stared deep into her sparkling eyes. "Darling, I cannot take being apart from you a moment longer. I must have you know!"

Within a flash Draco used his wand to push everything off of their table and threw Hermione and himself onto it. They proceeded to snog heavily until someone beside them cleared their throat. They both looked over to see the hostess as cheerful as ever.

"The wizard soap opera fantasy. We get that a lot here. Unfortunately, you are disturbing the other patrons, and I am going to have to ask you to leave."

"Right then," said Draco, climbing off the table and pulling a giggling Hermione with him. "We'll just take the check then and be on our way."

The hostess handed him a slip of paper. He looked briefly at it before slipping several Galleons out of his pocket and leaving them on the table. As they exited the tea shop everyone applauded. Whether it was in praise of their performance or in joy of having the annoying couple kicked out, they did not care. They took a bow either way.

After leaving Madam Puddifoot's, Draco and Hermione headed over to Honeydukes. All of that talk of candy at dinner made them both crave some. They played around in there for a while, feeding each other their favorite treats - and avoiding the acid pops - before heading back outside and taking one of those cheesy horse drawn carriage rides around town, which was really just an excuse to snog while more people watched them.

When the carriage ride ended the two of them decided to take a walk. They ended up heading down an alley for their first attempt at peace and quiet that night. Neither of them remembered the last time they'd had so much fun.

Draco stared deep into Hermione's amber eyes while tracing her bottom lip with his thumb. She reached up and brushed a stray hair out of his eyes, smiling as his arm wrapped even tighter around her waist. Both of them knew the words they wanted to say, but neither of them was brave enough to be the first. Hermione's lips just began to move when they heard some heavy breathing and a girl's giggle … a very French sounding giggle.

"Heehee, Phillipe! Zat teeckles!"

Both Hermione and Draco turned towards the couple in the shadows and said, "Sophie?"

The couple froze, lips still locked. Both of them turned slowly to look closely at the other couple in the alleyway. Sophie yipped when she saw them and jumped out of Phillip's arms, only to move right back into them.

"'Ermione, Draco, what are you doing 'ere?"

"I think we can ask you the same question," said Hermione.

Draco stared at the two of them befuddled for a minute before smiling, throwing his hands into the air, and shouting, "Ha! I told you they were shagging, Mione! Looks like I win the bet!"

"We don't know if they're shagging, Draco. Maybe they're just snogging. You're just snogging, right guys?" Both Sophie and Phillip cast their eyes to the ground. "This is the first time this has happened, right?" Their faces only became guiltier. "Oh Merlin, please don't tell me Draco was right and this has been going on since before we separated?" More guilt. "Oh my."

"What a glorious reunion this is!" exclaimed Draco, throwing one arm tightly around Hermione's shoulders. "This has the makings of a celebration! Drinks on me!"

"Ooh, zat sounds wonderful," said Sophie, immediately brightening up. She pulled Phillip along with her and ran straight into Hermione's arms. "'Ow I 'ave meessed you, 'Ermione!"

Several minutes later the four of them were sitting in the Three Broomsticks, Hermione and Draco listening while Sophie and Phillip - mainly Sophie - told them exactly how this all began.

"Well, eet first 'appened at my parent's chateaux een France."

"In France? When did you find the time for that with Daniel and Anna showing up?" asked Hermione, visibly offended that Sophie never told her about this.

"Uhh … yeah … eet was after zat."

"After? Like right after?"

"Not right after. There was like an hour in between," smirked Phillip.

"Nice!" said Draco, clanking his mug with Phillip's.

"Eet was _supposed_ to only be a one night zing. We deescussed eet after and said never again."

"But then we got to Arizona and Sophie got a little too cozy with that bloody American."

"As I recall, you looked _plenty_ cozy wiz zat 'ore on ze dance floor too!"

"Only because you were rubbing that 'Patreeck' in my face!"

"I was not!"

"Is that really what's important now?" asked Draco in an attempt to play mediator. "Help me out here, Mione."

"I can't believe you didn't tell me about this, Sophie!" Hermione narrowed her eyes at the other witch, her arms crossed. "After that huge fit you threw when you found out about me and Draco."

"Zat was deefferent! Draco stopped pursuing me to start pursuing you. You and Phillipe were long over by ze time zis 'appened!"

"So why couldn't you just tell me as a friend? Maybe then I wouldn't have made this stupid bet with Draco."

"And lost, by the way. I plan on cashing in on that tonight."

"I'm sorry 'Ermione! But, as you well know, certain circumstances are keeping us from going publeec wiz zis. Chasteety would never let us 'ear ze end of eet."

"You have me curious, Malfoy. What _exactly_ were the terms of your bet?"

Hermione blushed. Draco smirked and threw his arm around her. "Should we tell them, Mione?"

"No!"

"Why not? It's simple enough. If I lost, which I knew I wouldn't, I'd have to wait on my house-elf for a week, and if she lost …"

Sophie and Phillip leaned in closer. Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh fine. If I lost I had to do that thing I never do?"

"What zing?" asked Sophie, who was beyond curious.

"Should we do it, Mione?"

"_Here_?"

"Yes here."

"In front of _everyone_?"

"I want them to see you squirm."

"Uhh … guys … zis ees somezing appropriate for you to do een publeec, right?"

"Come on! Do it!" baited Draco.

"I don't know if I want to see this," said Phillip, leaning back and pulling Sophie with him.

"Okay, _fine_!" shouted Hermione, slamming her hands on the table. "You were right and I was wrong! HAPPY NOW?"

Draco grinned from ear to ear. "Very."

"Zat's eet?" squeaked Sophie. "But zat was so lame."

"Hermione _hates_ admitting she's wrong. Good job, darling," he said, leaning in and kissing her on the cheek. He lingered there for a minute, slyly whispering into her ear, "We can do the _real_ thing later, right?"

Hermione responded by kissing him passionately. When Draco pulled away he gave her a satisfied smile.

"You two still need to finish your story," said Hermione, turning back to Sophie and Phillip.

"Oh, right!" said Sophie, her eyes brightening immediately. "So, after we separated from you two we kept at eet."

"Yeah we did!" said Phillip, giving Sophie a high-five.

"We talked about stopping several times, but about two weeks een we realized we really deed not want to stop. We 'ave always liked each ozer, but only ever acted on eet zat one time before. Ze timing was never right. But zen just a few days ago …" Sophie paused and looked at Phillip, both of them smiling as they gazed into each other's eyes … "we fell een love."

"_Love_?" asked both Hermione and Draco, as if 'love' was a foreign concept to them.

"Yes. Love," said Phillip.

"Mr. Olleevander sent on zis pointless meession to get a troll 'air. 'E 'as not even taken eet from us yet. Ze 'eedeous zing nearly keelled me."

"Troll hair you say?" said Draco, who was currently more curious in their missing ingredient then he was in Sophie and Phillip's tale of love. Hermione gave him a stern look.

Sophie didn't even notice. She was too engulfed in her own story. "Phillipe 'ad been knocked unconscious for several meenutes and ze troll 'ad backed me eento a corner. Eet was coming for me and I 'ad nowhere to go. Zen, out of nowhere, Phillipe popped up from ze ground and zapped ze troll seelly!"

"Literally," said Phillip, chuckling at the memory.

"Zat's when I knew. Phillipe was ze one."

"The one?" repeated Hermione, still in shock about the whole confession. Phillip and Sophie shagging she could understand, but love? They were just too … different. She glanced sideways at Draco, who was making a point not to notice her. If Sophie and Phillip were like apples and oranges, then Hermione and Draco were like a Purple Polly flower and a troll hair. The only thing they had in common was how they could both be used in potions, whatever that meant.

"Yes! Ze one! Zere is just somezing about surviving a troll attack zat really bonds you, you know?" said Sophie, looking expressively at her friend.

Hermione nodded. "I do actually.

Her mind became flooded with memories of her own troll attack and the bond that formed from it. Suddenly, Hermione really missed her two best friends. If she ever lost them it would completely destroy her. But their friendship was solid. Nothing could ever come between them. Except … Hermione glanced sideways again, wondering if Draco was really worth it. Then he looked at her and smiled. He grabbed her hand in his and pulled her even closer to him. She quickly forgot all about Harry and Ron.

When they were all finished with their drinks - except Hermione, who was always slower than the rest - Draco and Phillip got up and went over to the bar to order more. Sophie scooted closer to Hermione, hugging her as she did so. She was more than thrilled to have her friend back.

"So 'ow is everzing going wiz you and Draco? Steell hitting zat?" She winked.

Hermione giggled. "Yes, we still are. We're kind of …" Hermione trailed off. What were they exactly? "I think we're dating."

Sophie shot up. "_What_? 'Ow deed zat 'appen?"

"I don't know really. We were both perfectly fine with the whole secret thing, and then one day he wasn't. He gave me an ultimatum. All or nothing."

"And you chose _all_?" Hermione nodded. Sophie squealed and slapped her hands together. "'Ow romanteec!"

"There's just one thing …"

"What ees zat?" asked Sophie, leaning in closer.

"Well, it's just that … Draco's a bit … dare I say, frisky." Sophie giggled. Hermione smiled before continuing. "I hate to admit it, but I really have a hard time keeping up. He wants to … you know … all night long and then again in the morning. I barely get any sleep anymore. I'm exhausted."

"Yes, I 'ad zat same problem when Draco and I were … you know." She winked, completely blind to the way Hermione stiffened. She continued, "Ze first time we were at eet all ze way unteel I got zat 'Owler and -"

"Wait!" said Hermione, snapping one hand firmly in front of Sophie's face. "I'm sorry. Did you say you and Draco slept together?"

"Of course we deed, 'Ermione. You knew zat. I mean, you walked een on 'im een 'is underwear. One second earlier and you would 'ave gotten ze full frontal even earlier." Sophie laughed, but it didn't take her long to realize she was alone in it. "'Ermione, you 'ave to 'ave known."

Hermione shook her head, too angry to even cry. "No. He told me you two didn't do that."

"Well, what deed 'e tell you we deed? _Cuddle_?" Hermione's face sunk. She had never felt like such a fool. "Oh, 'Ermione. I am so sorry. Please, forget I ever said zat. Eet deed not mean anyzing. 'E cares about _you_."

"If he cared about me then he _never_ would have lied."

"Hello ladies, what are you talking about?"

Hermione's eyes went wide. She instinctually stood up from her seat, whipped around and smacked Draco clear across the face.

Draco was stunned. He stared back at her, completely dumbfounded for a minute before finally spitting out, "What the hell was that for?"

"_You lying, two-faced, sneaky little cockroach_!"

Hermione darted for the door. Draco looked at Sophie, who mouthed the words, "I am sorry," to him. He immediately put the pieces together and ran after Hermione.

"Mione wait!" he shouted down the street.

Hermione whipped around, tears finally stinging her eyes. "_You_ don't get to call me that! That name is a term of endearment and there is clearly no endearment here!"

"Please just let me explain!"

"You lied to me! You promised me you and Sophie never shagged!"

"I never promised that, I only said it!" he said, filling in the space between them.

Hermione turned red in the face. "Is this really the time for technicalities, Draco? Either way you lied!"

"You're right, I did, and I apologize for that. But if I hadn't you and I would have never happened. And I really _really_ wanted it to happen."

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"_Why_ did you _really_ want this to happen? Was it bragging rights?"

"No."

"Really? You mean you never wanted to rub _this_," she motioned between them, "in Harry and Ron's faces?"

"Of course not! You know I only said that before out of anger! I didn't really mean it!"

"Didn't you Draco? Because I'm starting to think that that's _exactly_ what this is! Why else would a chauvinistic Pureblood like you _ever_ go for a Mudblood like me, unless it was some sort of conquest?"

"I don't know why I did."

"'I don't know' isn't good enough! I need answers!"

"Please, just let it go, Hermione."

"No! No, I will not let it go! We said no more lies, Draco! You could have told me about this at any time but you never did!" Until now Hermione had held it together pretty well, but she couldn't do it any longer. She burst into tears, more upset by this one little lie than she ever thought she could be. Draco tried to pull her close and comfort her but she pushed him away. "Don't touch me!"

Hermione turned away from him and started stomping towards their tent.

"Hermione!" Draco called after her.

"Don't you dare come back tonight!"

Draco watched her until she was out of sight, unsure of what he was supposed to do. Once she was gone he rampaged around, throwing and hitting anything he could get his hands on. And when there was nothing left inside of him but a hollow hole he headed back to the pub, the one place he might have a chance to forget about Hermione.

XXX

Several hours later Draco sat alone at the bar drinking his X number of firewhiskey. He really had no clue how many he had had, nor did he care. No matter how many he drank he still couldn't get Hermione out of his head.

Sophie and Phillip had gone to bed shortly after he returned. He didn't blame them since even he was aware of what a downer he had become.

Madam Rosmerta had just finished cleaning up after her second to last customer before walking up to him. He had his head flat against the bar with one hand firmly clasped around his drink. She tried to pry it away from him.

"Come on now. Give it here. I told my bloody bartender to cut you off hours ago. Stupid kid ain't worth a damn."

Draco misunderstood and thought she was talking about him, but he didn't care anymore. "You're right," he mumbled into the wooden surface, final letting go of the drink. "I'm not worth a damn."

"That's not what I sai -"

"Yeah it is! 'N ya know what? You were _right_," he said, lifting his head and fumbling with it for a moment. When had it gotten so heavy? "You were right about _everything_. I did lie to her. About something soooooo _stupid_. She does'," _hiccup_, "nt care that I 'shagged' Sophie. She cares that I lied. I _lied_. _Again_! I could've fixed it but I didn'. What's wrong with me?"

"Uhh … nothing. Look, kid, it's time to go," said Rosmerta trying to shuffle him towards the exit.

"Where? _Where_ am I supposed to go? She said 'don' you dare come back tonight'!" he mimicked, holding one finger in the air. "I've lied about worse things. Why does she care about _this_?"

Finally giving into the pleas of a drunken idiot, Madam Rosmerta answered, "Because she cares about you and you made her feel like a fool."

"I didn' mean to."

"Few men ever _mean _to, but that's what you do. Tell me, Draco," she said, taking a seat on the stool next to him, "why _did_ you lie to her?"

"I dunno."

"Yes you do. I've been watching you with her over this past week and even I'm surprised to say I _actually_ believe you care about her. So, tell me now, why-did-you-lie?"

Draco shrugged. "I don' think I cared about her yet. I liked," _hiccup_, "her alright, but if she knew about me 'n Sophie she never woulda shagged me."

"And why did you want to shag her so bad?"

Draco's head fell back on the bar. "I dunno. I guess maybe I really _did_ want Potty and Weasel to find out. By Merlin, she was right!" His head shot back up. He suddenly felt very dizzy. "But I never woulda done that if I didn' like her at least a little," he said, squeezing his forefinger and his thumb together. "I never really believed it would get that far, anyway. Who would? She's a Mud -" Draco stopped, sighed, and corrected himself. "Muggle-born."

"Do you care about her?"

"Yes."

"Do you love her?"

Draco groaned and dropped his forehead onto the bar. "I dunno," he mumbled. "Sometimes … maybe. I hate her more."

"_Hate_ is a big part of love. You can only hate someone you feel passionate about."

"I disagree!" he said, his head shooting up once again. He started to tilt sideways but Madam Rosmerta nudged him back the other way. At this rate he was bound to either hurt himself or vomit. She was sure it would at least be one of those things, if not both. "I hate _plenty_ of people I don' feel passion for!" He groaned again, his forehead falling right back onto the bar. "But I hate her _differently_. Rosmerta … do I love/hate her?"

Madam Rosmerta smiled at Draco for the first time in years. "Yes, I think you do."

"You're really nice. Any other person woulda kicked me outta here a loooong time ago."

"I'm aware," she said.

"I'm sorry for what I did to you. You didn' deserve it. I know I said that before but I really really mean it."

"I believe you."

Draco closed his eyes and sighed. "Good."

"But it is time for you to leave and I'm afraid I don't have any rooms available. Maybe at the Hog's Head … Draco?" She nudged him. Nothing. "Draco?" He let out a loud snore. Madam Rosmerta looked at the unconscious boy and groaned. "You've got to be kidding me?" Draco snored even louder. "Should've kicked him out when I had the bloody chance. Alright boy. Come along." She put one arm around the sleeping wizard and unsteadily carried him to the back, all the while Draco snoring and mumbling Hermione's name.


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: Action packed chapter coming soon. Until then, enjoy this one! ;-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The next morning Draco woke with a start. He'd been having nightmares about his father and the Dark Lord again, and without Hermione there to hold him they had come back in full force.

He instinctually reached for her, only to realize she wasn't there … wherever _there_ was. Draco was currently lying on a couch in a room he didn't recognize. The walls were dirty and worn, and the lone couch and coffee table weren't any better. Only a hearth and some pots signified any signs of a kitchen in cobweb covered corner. Draco was starting to wonder if this place was lived in at all.

A shuffling sounded behind him. Draco whipped around and locked eyes with a confused looking old man wearing nothing but a nightdress and matching cap. "Is that you Glinda? Your hair has certainly gotten lighter. Did you accidentally drop a bottle of Muggle peroxide on it?"

"Glinda?" repeated Draco. "Do you really think I look like a woman?"

"Oh look! The little birdy is talking again. Come here pretty bird. Mangeis has a cracker for you."

"What in the name of Merlin …"

"Father, there you are! I told you not to leave your bed!" shouted Madam Rosmerta, running into the room. "What if you had gone outside again?" She looked over and caught sight of Draco. "Oh, you're awake."

"Is that you, Glinda? Did you see the bird flying with the monkeys again? What a brave bird it is."

"No father, it's me, Rosie. Remember?"

"Oh, what pretty red shoes you wear!"

Rosmerta sighed. "Right. Well, come along. We need to get you securely in the cellar before the tornado hits."

Rosmerta guided the babbling old man out of the room, only to return a minute later. She walked over to the hearth and lit a fire with her wand. While she started to make porridge, Draco walked up to her and asked, "What's wrong with him?"

Without looking up she said, "During the Battle of Hogwarts he was hit with what I can only assume was a powerful Confundus Charm. Hasn't been right since. For some reason he thinks he's in the middle of some Muggle story, which is ironic since he was cursed by a Death Eater. Granted, there are witches in the story … but, still, it's weird."

"Why isn't he at St. Mungo's?"

"Not everyone has unlimited resources, kid. I barely made enough to keep this place running before, and now, with the cost of his medication … well, needless to say, I'm barely getting by."

"I guess that's why you were so willing to take my donations," he realized.

"Guess so," she said, staring deep into the pot she was stirring.

"Well, I suppose I should be going now," said Draco, still unsure of where he was supposed to go. "Thank you for letting me stay here last night. That _is _what happened, right? I don't remember much, but I can't really see myself coming in here on my own accord."

"You're right, you didn't. But when you passed out on my bar you didn't leave me much choice, did you?"

Draco blushed. He couldn't believe he did that. Normally he was really good about keeping control while drinking, but last night he'd been too upset to even think about control.

"I apologize."

"Yes, you did a lot of that last night too."

Before he could ask exactly what he said last night, a door slammed in the distance. Both he and Madam Rosmerta reacted to it.

"What the bloody hell was that?" Draco asked.

"Sounds like someone angry just came into the inn. Probably your girlfriend."

"She's not my girlfriend."

"Really now?" she said, looking inquisitively at him. "Well, she might as well be the way you two carry on. Must've heard about your little performance in Madam Puddifoot's a million times last night."

"Well, I don't understand why she's here now," he said, though he was secretly relieved.

"She's probably looking for you. After all, you didn't go back to wherever it is you two have been staying last night."

"Only because she told me not to."

Madam Rosmerta looked at the young, naïve wizard and smiled. "Consider yourself lucky, boy, because I'm about to share a secret about women with you. She said she didn't want you to come back last night, and she meant it, but she still wanted you to try."

"Try?" he asked, furrowing his brow.

"Yes, try," said Rosmerta. "She wanted you to come and bang on the door, begging her to let you in and talk this out. But you didn't."

"Because she _told_ me not to!" he repeated.

"Do what she wants, not what she says."

"What the hell does that mean?"

Rosmerta rolled her eyes. "Why are you still in here talking to me? Go on and get your girl already."

Draco looked towards the exit and frowned. "Right. I suppose I have to deal with this sooner or later. Would it be too much to ask you to wish me luck?"

"Luck," said Rosmerta, looking back to her pot.

Draco nodded at her before heading out to find Hermione.

XXX

Hermione could not _believe_ Draco hadn't come back to the tent last night! She had thought he might sleep outside, but she looked all around and he wasn't there. Then she went to the Hog's Head and asked Aberforth if he had checked in. He hadn't.

Now she was at the Three Broomsticks and madder than ever. Where was he? Had he gone home with another witch? Her nostrils flared. She would _kill_ him.

Madam Rosmerta wasn't around when Hermione arrived, so she took it upon herself to look at the inns registry. Draco's name wasn't in there, but Phillip Prior and Sophie Labelle were. She memorized their room number and went running up the stairs. When she found their room she immediately started banging on the door. Within seconds a sleepy-looking Phillip answered.

"Hermione? It's seven in the morning. What in Merlin are you doing here?"

"He didn't come back last night!" she exclaimed, pushing past him and letting herself into their room. Sophie sat up in the bed. "He's not here?" asked Hermione, looking all around.

"Of course not," yawned Sophie.

"Well, where is he?"

Sophie and Phillip both shrugged. Then Phillip said, "Wait, I thought you told him _not_ to come back last night. That's what he said, anyway."

Sophie chuckled. "Oh Phillipe. You men are so naïve. _Of course_ she wanted 'im to come back. She just deed not want to see 'im."

"How does that make sense?"

"Eet just does. Now, come 'ere, 'Ermione." Sophie opened her arms and reached out for her. Hermione looked at them skeptically. The French witch huffed. "Do not tell me you are mad at me too! I deed not do anyzing!"

"Oh, I know," said Hermione, slumping into her friends arms. "I'm sorry I barged in here. I don't know what's wrong with me."

"Nozing ees wrong wiz you. You just like 'im, zat ees all."

"But _why_?"

"I've been asking myself that all summer," laughed Phillip. Sophie shot him a sharp look. "Sorry."

"That's quite alright, Phil. I hardly take offense to anything _you_ say."

They all turned to see Draco leaning against the doorframe. Hermione flew out of Sophie's arms and over to him. "Where were you?" she demanded.

"You told me not to come back so I didn't."

"But _where_ _were you_?"

"Why does that matter?"

Hermione's heart sank. "Oh Merlin … you _were_ with another girl. How could you? _How-could-you_!" She threw her arms up to hit him but Draco grabbed her wrists and held them steady. "Let go! LET GO!" Hermione bucked all around, trying to get loose but Draco kept his grip.

"Hermione, calm down! You're acting bloody insane! Of course I wasn't with another girl!"

"How do I know you're not lying? You lie about everything else you stupid, stupid -"

"I'm not lying! You _know_ I'm not! I was the one who wanted it to be just you and me, remember? You're the one who had to bloody think about it!"

Hermione stopped fighting him. She closed her eyes, took several deep breaths and said, "You're right. I believe you weren't with another girl. But why won't you tell me where you were?" she asked, her eyes shooting back open.

"Who said I wasn't going to? Give me a minute next time before you bloody attack me." Hermione waited. Draco sighed and said, "I was here."

"_Here_? As in the Three Broomsticks?"

"Yes."

"That's impossible. I looked in the registry and your name wasn't in it."

"Because I wasn't a guest, Hermione. From what I'm told I passed out drunk on the bar and Madam Rosmerta dragged me to her couch in the back. Think I might still be a little intoxicated, actually," he said, rubbing his aching head. Had he hit it against something last night?

"Is that really true?" Draco looked into her narrowed eyes and nodded. Hermione huffed. "Wow. That was _real_ mature, Draco. Getting completely inebriated and taking advantage of Madam Rosmerta's kindness like that. Drinking is _never_ the answer."

"Well, it was the only answer I had last night. You wouldn't even give me the chance to explain myself."

"That's because you have no explanation, Draco! No excuse you come up with will change the fact that you lied, and I'm sure whatever answer you plan on giving now will only make it worse. I'm doing you a favor by telling you to save it!"

"Come on," he said, grabbing her hand. "You and I are going outside to talk."

Hermione pulled her hand out of his. "Fine. Sophie, Phillip, we'll meet you at breakfast in an hour. We need to talk to you about that troll hair and any other items Mr. Ollivander never collected from you."

Hermione walked past Draco and led the way downstairs. He was never far behind her. When they got outside they instinctually walked towards their tent, taking a seat on the ground just outside of it. Neither of them knew where to begin, but Draco realized the first word had to be his.

"I'm sorry I lied," he finally said.

"Why did you do that?" asked Hermione, the hurt recognizable in her strained voice.

He shrugged. "I don't know. It seems like so long ago now."

"Could you at least try to explain it to me?"

"Well … when you said I was shagging Sophie I instinctually said we weren't. There wasn't a whole lot of thought behind it. I just knew if I told you the truth you never would have chosen me over Phillip. You silly girls and your morals." He tried to chuckle, but it was a weak attempt.

Hermione wasn't amused. "It's not funny, Draco. You and I seem to be getting closer all the time, and the more emotionally involved I become the more I start to wonder about why this all began in the first place. You made the first move on the cliff that day when you kissed me. Why did you do that?" Draco opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, she added, "And _no_ 'I don't knows'. If I'm not allowed to say it then neither are you."

Draco closed his mouth again. That made this exceedingly more difficult. "I suppose the forbidden fruit theory isn't so farfetched."

Hermione's mouth suddenly felt like it was stuffed full of cotton.

"But it wasn't _just_ that, Hermione. The idea of anything happening between you and me never even crossed my mind until Sequoia."

"When?"

"Like I said. Sequoia."

"No, Draco, what I mean is what defining moment in Sequoia made you feel this way?"  
>Draco groaned. He really wished he could lie to her, but that's what got him into this mess in the first place. "It was the moment I saw you kissing Phil."<p>

Hermione clenched her face up, trying with all her might to hold back her tears.

"Please don't cry, Hermione."

She gulped them back for a little while longer. "Did you even like me at all?" she asked him with pleading eyes. "Or was it all just a competition for you?"

"I did like you. We had fun that day. And in Paris. I definitely liked you more than I liked Sophie. Doesn't that count for anything?"

"No," said Hermione. She wished it did count, but the fact that he liked her slightly more than he liked Sophie wasn't enough to make up for the lies.

"Well, you be honest then. Why did you choose me over Phil?"

"I wasn't going to," she said truthfully. "But that whole white knight act of yours with the dragon changed my mind. I was really worried when you got hurt and knew then that I cared about you."

"If I didn't care about you I wouldn't have flown into a dragon, Hermione."

"I know. But that doesn't change the fact that you only chose me because someone else did too, _or_ the lie you told me to get me to choose you over him."

"You're right, I messed up in the beginning, but why should that change the way we feel now? I care about you, Hermione, and I don't want to lose you because of some stupid lie I told two months ago. So, it's your call. Where does this leave us?"

"Oh, I don't know, Draco."

"Are we going to go back to the way we began?" he asked, secretly dreading her answer.

"No!" Hermione said quickly. She sighed. "No, but I do need time to think about this. Maybe friends are all we should have been in the first place."

"I don't believe that."

"Just give me time, Draco," she said, rubbing her temples. Her head was throbbing. All of this crying combined with not sleeping was really taking a toll on her, and when she slept alone again tonight it was only bound to get worse. "I'm going to see if any rooms are becoming available today at the Three Broomsticks before breakfast. You can stay in the tent." She stood up. "Are you coming?"

"Not yet. I need to change," he said, looking down at the same clothes he had worn for their date the night before. It had been less than twelve hours ago, but at that time their future had looked so different. What he wouldn't give to get that back.

Hermione nodded, but before she could walk away Draco stood up and pulled her into a hug. She didn't react at first, but eventually her arms flung around his waist, squeezing him with everything she had while weeping into his chest.

She didn't want things to change, but maybe all of this happening now was a sign. She had a chance to rid herself of him a few weeks early, which was good since the longer she waited the harder she knew it was going to be to let him go. Hermione and Draco could never be together. She had promised Ron she would come back to him at the end of the summer and she meant it. Still, there were times when she completely forgot how it felt to be in Ron's arms. Right now was one of them.

After wiping her eyes Hermione headed back to the inn while Draco went inside the tent to write a letter. When it was finished he called Ruskle and sent it off with him. He changed and took a few extra minutes alone before grabbing the extra Purple Polly Flowers for Sophie, and heading back to the Three Broomsticks for breakfast.

When he got there Hermione, Sophie and Phillip were sitting at a table, drinking glasses of pumpkin juice. There was an extra glass for him. Sophie's face lit up when she saw the flowers. She immediately started sucking on one while waiting for her food to arrive.

Hermione had already ordered for Draco, since, over the past two months, she was more than aware of what he liked and didn't like to eat in the morning. He wanted to be mad but she had chosen his favorite so there was really no reason, other than the purpose of starting a pointless fight.

As it turned out, Sophie and Phillip had collected a troll hair _and_ sap from a maple tree, as well as a golden ladle Mr. Ollivander had given them when the passed through Diagon Alley one day. The only ingredient left was the Phoenix tear, and all of them already had a pretty good idea of where Mr. Ollivander expected them to get one.

"Do you really zink 'e ees going to make us capture zat dragon after what 'appened last time?" asked Sophie.

"Yes," the others said in unison.

"Ze man ees eensane!"

No one argued. None of them were dragon hunters, but it looked like soon they would need to be.

After breakfast everyone headed their own direction for the day. Hermione went back to the tent to gather her things, then proceeded to sulk in her new room for the remainder of the day, Draco went for a long, _long_ walk, where he also proceeded to sulk, and Sophie and Phillip spent their time in the various stores, enjoying each other's company.

Just before the potions forty-eight hour mark they all met at the entrance to Hogwarts. Draco and Hermione took charge of finishing the potion.

The moment forty-eight hours hit they had to remove it from the fire, dropping in the troll hair simultaneously. The potion needed to cool naturally for twenty minutes, then have a cooling spell cast on it. Once it was exactly 21 degrees Celsius they dropped in the maple tree sap and the Purple Polly Flower. Black smoke emerged, smelling a bit like licorice.

Hermione and Draco glanced sideways at each other as the black cloud shifted over their heads, completely avoiding Sophie and Phillip on the other side. The irony was not wasted on them.

"Now what?" asked Phillip, who was standing behind Sophie with his arms wrapped comfortably around her waist. Both of them were too blinded by their own lust for each other to notice the way Hermione and Draco ached every time they looked at them. It wasn't fair that the two of them were happy when they, so obviously, weren't.

"Well, we're not supposed to take it out of the cauldron until we add the Phoenix tear, so I guess we'll just have to wait."

"Are we supposed to carry zis big old zing all ze way to ze mountains wiz us?"

"Guess so," said Draco, giving it a lift. "Not too bad. I think the potion is weightless."

Just then, the door to the Potions classroom flew open and Professor McGonagall ran in, chasing an owl. They all knew the bird immediately.

"Has anyone ever caught the owl's name?" asked Hermione as it dropped a letter into her hands. Everyone shook their heads.

"Is this _your_ owl, Ms. Granger?"

"Well, I suppose it's all of ours, in a way," she said, looking at her old professor. "Why? Did he give you any trouble?"

"That menace has been pecking from door to door for the last hour! There are _droppings_ all down the corridor and Mr. Filch is refusing to clean them up!"

"I am on eet!" said Sophie, who ran out of the room with her wand raised.

Professor McGonagall's eyes followed the French witch as she exited. "Wasn't she here from Beauxbatons for the Goblet of Fire?"

"Yes," said Phillip proudly.

"Mr. Prior?"

"Yes," he said again. "It's me. Good to see you again, Professor. Or should I say Headmistress now?"

"Either is perfectly alright with me. Are they with you two?" she asked, looking at Hermione and Draco.

Hermione nodded. "Yes. We were all working together earlier this summer but were only reunited last night."

"Well, it _hardly_ takes four people to make a potion." The headmistress glanced into the cauldron, raising her eyebrows at the sludgy, black liquid that somewhat resembled tar. "What is this for, exactly?"

"That's confidential," said Hermione, trying to slyly slip the letter into her pocket.

"What are you hiding?" said McGonagall, noticing what she was doing immediately. "Give that letter here, Ms. Granger." She held out her hand.

"Professor McGonagall, we're not in school anymore," said Draco. "If Hermione doesn't want to give you the letter she doesn't -"

"I said _give it here_, Ms. Granger!" she repeated much more sternly.

Hermione looked to Draco, who shrugged, then Phillip, who did the same. Defeated, she handed her former professor the letter.

As soon as it was in her hands, McGonagall tore open the seal and started reading, her eyes drastically widening with each sentence. "You most certainly _will not_!"

Draco took the letter back from her and scanned its contents. It was exactly as they suspected.

"_I forbid it_!"

"You can't forbid us, professor," said Phillip, taking the letter from Draco and reading it himself. He then handed it to Hermione. "It's our job."

"I am going to Floo Garrick right now and tell him -"

"No!" snapped Hermione, removing her eyes from the letter and fixing them straight on the headmistress."

"I beg your pardon, Ms. Granger?"

"I said no!"

McGonagall gasped. Even Draco and Phillip were a little stunned.

"I'm sorry to be rude, professor, but so far this summer I have survived attacks from _two _dragons, vampires, dementors, two types of giant spiders, a giant squid, a three-headed dog, and who knows what else, I can't really remember! And I did _all_ of this while having a horribly kept secret affair with a barefaced liar, which, apparently, only I was blind to! I have used everyone I care about to keep this affair hidden from one of the two people in this world I have always been honest with, all the while getting my heart stomped on repeatedly by a perfectly house-elf polished boot - which is against my morals, by the way - when my only crime has been caring too much!" She caught her breath, and then continued, "Oh! And let's not forget the lovesick French girl and her crumpet, whose sudden love is just another jab that keeps hitting deeper and deeper, pounding into my inner core while I am forced to contemplate the 'casual' affair I could have had with the other guy I snogged this summer - no offense on the casual, Phillip!"

"None taken."

"But, instead, I had to go for the complicated! And yes, you heard me right, professor! It wasn't just one guy I snogged this summer, forgetting _completely_ about Ron! It was two. _Two_! You might as well call me a blatant whore! So, I'm sorry, professor, but no! You will _not_ be getting in the way of this mission, we _will_ be getting a heartstring from this dragon, and I_ am_ going to have something positive to tell people when I talk about my summer working for the most _insane_ man in the wizarding world! _Is that alright with you, professor_?"

Professor McGonagall stared at Hermione with her mouth agape for a moment before reaching forward and putting her hand on Hermione's forehead. "Ms. Granger, are you feeling alright?"

They all turned as Sophie giggled in the doorway. "Nice speech, 'Ermione. But eef you are a blatant 'ore I do not even want to know what I am. I 'ave done more zan just _snog_ ze same two guys as you zis summer." She winked.

Hermione hated to do it, but she cracked a smile. "Oh my Merlin. I cannot believe I just said all of that. I'm so sorry, everyone."

She said everyone, but Draco was the one she looked at. He was currently turned away from her with both hands braced on the table in front of him. She tried to reach out for him but he moved away from her. Draco stormed out of the classroom without saying anything. Hermione stared after him, for the first time feeling a real sense of regret. If she and Draco weren't ruined before, they were definitely ruined now.

XXX

Sometime later, Draco stood alone in his old room in the Slytherin dormitories, staring out the window while the giant squid baited him. He hadn't forgotten about their little skirmish in the lake and he was more than ready for a rematch.

"'Ermione zought you might be een 'ere." He glanced over his shoulder as Sophie walked towards him. She stopped by his old bed, placing her hand around one of the four posts. "I weell bet anyzing zis one was yours. Eet 'as Draco Malfoy wreetten all over eet."

"How does everyone keep guessing that?"

Sophie smiled before jumping onto the bed and lying on her stomach with her head facing him. "'Ermione feels really bad about what 'appened upstairs. Any chance you weell talk to 'er?"

"No."

"Zat ees fine," said Sophie, putting both hands under her chin. "I understand. Eet was defeenitely not ze nicest of outbursts, but you 'ave to commend 'er passion."

"I feel like a fool."

"You mean like she deed when you lied to 'er?" smirked Sophie.

Draco glanced over at her and smirked back. "Touché, Soph."

"Personally, I zink you are boz being stupeed. You like each ozer. Maybe eet ees not ze best of seetuations, but neizer ees Phillipe's and mine, and we are making eet work."

"It's a little different, Sophie. She's in love with someone else."

"Someone else she wanted to get away from zis summer."

"Only to have one last fling - otherwise known as me - before getting engaged."

"So?" said Sophie, scooting to the edge of the bed. "Let me tell you somezing about women, Draco. She deed not go off zis summer just to 'ave a fling, what she really wanted was to see eef somezing better was out zere, and I zink she found eet."

"If you're referring to me, I already know I'm better than Weasley."

Sophie rolled her eyes. "Zere's zat arrogant ass'ole I 'ave meessed so much. But I do not mean better een general, Draco, I mean better for 'Ermione."

"He's better for her."

"Do you really believe that?"

Draco gulped. "Yes."

Sophie frowned. "Hmm … I deesagree. I zink you are absolutely perfect for 'er!"

"Why?" he asked, glancing sideways at her.

"Because you love 'er." Draco opened his mouth to protest but Sophie pointed sternly at him and shouted, "And don't you dare say ozerwise you stupeed geet!"

"It's git, Sophie."

"Zat ees what I said! _Geet_!"

Draco laughed. "Believe it or not, I think I actually missed you."

"I can understand zat," she said, climbing off the bed and hugging him from behind.

"Now who's arrogant?"

"You see what I mean?" she asked, turning him around. "You and I are absolutely _perfect_ for each ozer on paper. We are arrogant and maneepulative and always get what we want, but neizer of us wanted more zan what we 'ad. Do you know why?"

"Why?" he asked, mainly to humor her.

"Because sometimes eet ees ze opposite's 'o attract. Maybe zis _Ron_ ees more compateeble wiz 'Ermione, but zat does not make 'im better! Now, stop being an eediot and go and ween 'er back!"

"I don't love her, Sophie. Not in the way you're referring, anyway."

"_Fine_. You do not realize eet yet. _Whatever_."

"No, it's not that I don't realize it, it's that -"

"Does zat zing _always_ do zat?"

Draco turned back around and saw one giant squid eye staring back at him. It was waiting. "No," he said. "I think it wants to eat me."

"Oh … well, speaking of eating, let's go to deenner een town and catch up! Just me and you!"

"Won't Phil mind?"

"No!" laughed Sophie. "I already told 'im we were going to. 'E knows better zan to argue wiz me."

Draco smirked. "You're one of a kind, Sophie Labelle."

"As are you, Draco Malfoy."

Sophie pulled Draco out of the room by the hand, more than satisfied with herself for successfully cheering him up. Men were like putty in her hands. She would have him admitting his love for Hermione in no time.

21


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: I didn't want to split this chapter in half but it was so long I really had no choice :-(**

**A lot of stuff happens in this part, but a scene I've been dying to write for a while will be in part 2! Hope you enjoy!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The next morning the four of them woke up extra early to head for the mountains. They all met at Draco's tent since Hermione and Phillip had brought the potion there the day before. They decided that the best way to carry it would be for two people to hold it between their brooms while they flew.

Before they left Hermione found the rope they had used on their very first mission and used her wand to stretch it. Then she cut it into four even pieces, bewitched it with a lasso charm and handed one to each of them.

"Now, I know you weren't there, Sophie and Phillip, but when Charlie and his group saved us from the dragon this is the method they used. Granted, there were five of them, but this one is significantly smaller than the Desert Destructor."

"Egyptian Inferno," corrected Draco.

"Wait, I zought we all decided on ze Sand Doom?"

"You know, all three names really are horrible." They all turned and glared at Phillip, but none as fiercely as Sophie. "You know, Sand Doom is growing on me," he said, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

Sophie smiled proudly. "Two against one and one. I ween."

Letting Sophie have her victory, they all grabbed their supplies and headed on their way. Each held onto their own rope and a dagger, since they decided to only bring one backpack. It had everything they needed - like the golden ladle, _101 Uses for Undead Root_, and phials - as well as anything they might need - Hermione's best books on dragons, food, water, extra daggers, Hermione's camera, etc.

It took them a few hours to fly to the peak. They landed a pretty good distance away from it, and Hermione and Sophie stayed with the potion while Draco and Phillip continued on foot to try and scout the dragon. If it wasn't around they were going to try and make a break for the phoenix's nest but, if it was, they were going to have to capture it first. The fact that the potion needed to have the phoenix tear literally shed into it made this task exceedingly more difficult.

"So what did you and Draco talk about last night?" asked Hermione the moment the two witches were alone.

Sophie smiled. "Zat ees confeedential eenformation, 'Ermione. I cannot just _tell_ you. Zat would be violating 'is trust."

"So what can you tell me?"

Sophie thought about this. "Draco ees 'urt, 'Ermione. Your leettle outburst yesterday was not exactly pointed een 'is favor."

"I know, and I feel awful about it. I don't know what I was thinking. I just kind of snapped, you know?"

"I do," she said, putting a comforting hand on her friends shoulder.

"Is there anything else you can tell me?"

"Just zat Draco ees as obleevious as you are," Sophie said, smirking.

"What does that mean?"

"Nozing."

Hermione sighed. "I just don't know if I can get over this, Sophie. I've never felt so betrayed in all my life. How am I supposed to move past this when I can't stop thinking abou -"

"'Ermione, stop for a meenute, weell you?"

Hermione shut her mouth and waited for Sophie to continue.

"Now, before I say zis, I want you to remember zat I 'ave ze utmost respect for you. You are beauteeful and breelliant and per'aps ze most eentimidating person I 'ave ever met, but you are being extremely zick right now and you need to get over eet."

Hermione blinked. "Uhh … what?"

"You are being zick and need to get over eet!" Sophie repeated.

"I'm being _sick_? How am I being sick?"

"Not seeck! Zick! Zick! You know, like stupeed!"

"Ooooh! Ooh, you mean _thick_! Wait … I'm not being thick!"

"Yes you are! You are mad about somezing so senseless. Why do you care so much about some stupeed lie 'e told you two monzs ago? Zere ees no reason eet should change ze way you feel now. Draco ees sorry. Zat ees all zat matters."

"But he _lied_."

"So? Everybody lies."

"I don't."

Sophie laughed loudly. "Oh, I am sure you 'ave. But I weell bet you do not see eet as lying, you see eet as a means to protect people. 'Ave you told any 'feebs' to protect anyone zis summer?"

Hermione was about to say no when she remembered something. Buckbeak. She had lied to Draco about Buckbeak. The hippogriff was supposed to be executed because of him, and she feared if Draco knew where he was he might try to do it again. But Draco would never do that. She knew that now.

And then she remembered another. Rita Skeeter. When she thought she saw a beetle in their tent she lied to Draco about why she didn't want the bug snooping around. Why she felt any need to protect that woman was beyond her.

"Okay, point proven. Maybe I do lie every now and then, but my little 'fibs' are nothing compared to what he did. I feel like such an idiot, Sophie. I should have known better. Why did I ever take his word on that?'

"'Ermione! Who cares?"

"Unfortunately, I do."

"Would eet make you feel any better eef I said eet was not zat good?"

"No."

Sophie smiled mischievously. "Good. Because zat would be a lie on your behalf."

Hermione chuckled awkwardly before throwing her head in the air and screaming, "This bloody sucks!"

"Language, 'Ermione!"

Hermione and Sophie looked at each other and laughed, their giggles only being broken by the sound of rocks tumbling. The laughter immediately ended.

"Stay 'ere and watch ze potion," said Sophie, standing up and running in the direction of the sound.

Hermione walked over to the cauldron and used a binding spell to attach it to her, just in case. The moment she was finished, heavy breathing sounded behind her. She swung around and came face to face with a pair of large, golden eyes. The dragon stared at her for a moment, sniffing the air around her before letting out a thunderous roar. Hermione screamed with it, shot several sparks into its nose and took off running, the cauldron holding their potion trailing after her.

"'Ermione!" she heard Sophie scream, but she had no time to look and see where she was. The dragon was right behind her. It would have gotten her too if they had not been so close to a cluster of caves.

Hermione did a baseball slide into a small opening barely big enough to fit her or the cauldron. There was no way for the dragon to follow her. It banged and clawed against the hole for a while before figuring out there was no way for it to get through. Hermione was just glad it was not a fire breather or else it might have found a more effective way to harm her. But, while the dragon may have been slow on the uptake, it was not dumb. Before disappearing it somehow managed to move a rock in front of the opening, blocking Hermione's only known escape route.

"Great," she sighed. "_Lumos_!"

The first thing Hermione did with the light was check on the cauldron, which was still bobbing beside her. Not one drop had spilt. She smiled to herself, proud that she had done such a successful binding charm.

Once she confirmed the potion was safe, Hermione took a good look at her surroundings. She was currently standing in the center of a narrow but tall cave with two exits. She peeked through each, not noticing any distinct differences into the rooms they led into. She chose the one on the left for no reason in particular, just a gut feeling. She shot sparks of light out in front of her, sending them off into the depths of the caves to either find an exit or warn her of the dragons arrival. Whichever came first.

Hermione walked through those caves for a good ten minutes without so much as a squeak from a bat. The silence was a bit unnerving. But then she heard something. She stood still and perked her ears up to listen. It was running water. It wasn't an exit, but it was a start.

She followed the sounds until she came upon a large room with cliffs that stretched all the way up to an open sky. If only she had her broom with her.

Several waterfalls trickled down these cliffs into a steaming pool of clear water. Hermione went over and ran her hand through it. The water was warm and perfect, other than feeling incredibly heavy. She frowned. What an unfortunate time to stumble upon a hot springs.

Just then, one of her sparks flew back into the room ringing like a bell. A warning bell. The dragon was close. A roar sounded from a room to her left. She quickly ran in the other direction. She had only gone through two more small caves when she heard some rocks crumbling in the room she had been about to run into.

Hermione slammed herself against the wall, followed by the cauldron, and tried to control her heavy breathing. She could hear the dragon growling as it walked by, sticking its nose in and sniffing right around where she was. She quickly used her wand to cast a non-verbal, odorless spell on herself. The moment she did the dragon moved on. Once it was gone she let out a sigh of relief.

Without looking, Hermione headed through a different exit, only to run right into something. She was about to scream when a calloused hand threw itself over her mouth. She looked up and was relieved to see a pair of familiar gray eyes.

"Draco," she said the moment he removed his hand. She threw her arms around his waist and hugged him. He took a moment to hug her back, breathing in what should have been the familiar scent he had come to love.

"Why don't you smell like anything?" he asked curiously.

"I cast an odorless charm on myself so the dragon wouldn't smell me. Here." She took out her wand and did the same to him.

Once it was done he said, "Come on," and grabbed her hand. "Sophie and Phillip are waiting outside of the entrance for us to trap the thing. We need to get it to chase us out." He looked back at her and was glad to see she still had her rope tied around her in the same fashion you would tie a toga. Realizing her brilliance, he did the same with his. This way it would stop slipping off of his waist.

Together they ran back the way Draco had come. Every now and then he would look back and laugh at the way the cauldron bobbed after her.

"Clever thinking."

"I'm just glad the dragon never got the chance to spill it. Imagine having to do everything over again?"

"There is no way I would go back to the Acromantula nest freely."

"Or to see Fluffy."

They both laughed, but were quick to shut their mouths when they heard a low growl. They backed against a wall and waited for the dragon to walk by. When they couldn't hear anything anymore, Draco peeked his head into the next room and looked around. All was clear.

He pulled Hermione into the larger cave with him and darted for the exit across the way. When they were about halfway to it a loud roar sounded above them. They looked up just in time to see the dragon detach itself from the wall and jump in front of them.

Draco and Hermione fell back. The dragon swiped at them but Hermione used a freezing charm on its arm. While it tried to figure out what exactly happened, Draco pulled Hermione to her feet and the two of them tried to make a break for the exit. But the dragon kept blocking them. Eventually, they had no choice but to retreat back into the caves.

While they attempted to circle back around to the main room with the exit, the dragon seemed wise to their plan and kept getting in their way. The only thing protecting them from its wrath were the smaller caves it could not fit into.

Before long they were back at the hot springs Hermione had stumbled upon earlier. It appeared that this is where it had been leading them all along.

As soon as they entered the dragon came barreling out of an adjacent room and lunged for them, knocking them both into the hot springs. Hermione unbound herself with the cauldron just in time. It landed safely on the ground.

The water felt heavy on impact. It was as if hundreds of hands were pulling them deeper and deeper into the depths. Hermione shot some light into the pool, causing several tiny, liquid women to recoil. Water nymphs. One of them kept a firm grip on Draco, so Hermione shot a spark of light into its face. It screeched out in agony before releasing him. He reached out and grabbed her hand, and the two of them swam towards the surface.

Draco and Hermione climbed onto the shore, but barely had time to catch their breath before the dragon was upon them. Draco shoved Hermione out of the way so the dragon only got a hold of him with its sharp talons.

"Draco!" Hermione screamed before instinctually grabbing onto the dragons tail.

It went straight up and out of the opening at the top of the caves, flying high into the sky. Hermione took this time to climb up its scales like a ladder, so she was now hanging onto its back. When it flew back down she had a much firmer grip on the thing so she didn't fall right off, but holding on still wasn't easy.

"Why does it always whip around like this?" shouted Draco from below. "If it has a destination it needs to just go there already!"

"I think it likes to play with its food first!" Hermione shouted back.

"'Ermione, what are you doing?"

Hermione looked over to see Sophie flying on her broom beside her. "Holding on for dear life!" she answered.

"Geeve me your 'and."

Sophie held out her hand for Hermione, who tried to grab it, but the dragon flew sideways and knocked Sophie back. Phillip appeared and stabled her before she could fall off her broom.

"We need to have all of the ropes if we're going to capture this thing!" Phillip shouted over the wind. The dragon turned around and nipped at him. He quickly maneuvered himself out of the way. "Somehow we need to get the two of you off of this thing and onto your brooms! Any suggestions?"

"'Ermione ees ze brains! Seence I am ze stealth I weell go and get ze brooms!" Sophie darted for the ground. She shouted over her shoulder, "Keep zem safe, Phillipe!" before disappearing.

"Make sure to hold on tight, Hermione! I'm going to keep this thing chasing me until she gets back!"

Hermione nodded before readjusting her grip on the dragons back.

"What about me?" Draco shouted from below.

"You don't have to hold on, the dragons the one holding you!" laughed Phillip before flying in front of them and leading the dragon in a fairly tame chase. He tried to keep them on a steady pathway, but he occasionally had to shoot downwards or upwards to get away from the thing.

Tired of playing these silly games, the dragon decided to step it up a notch. It picked up its speed and used both of its front talons, even the one holding Draco, to swipe at Phillip. Draco proceeded to scream as the dragon whipped him around. It eventually hit the back of Phillip's broom, causing the wizard to swerve a little before scraping his side against a cliff.

Phillip tried to get back on course but the dragon kept cutting him off. He dodged this way and that, but eventually had to do a full loop in the air to avoid the rampaging creature.

Hermione tried to hold on while the dragon followed Phillip in his upside-down circle, but her hands weren't strong enough and before she knew it she was falling. Phillip flew back around and caught her.

"Well, that's one way to get a person off a dragon's back!" He laughed.

"I'm glad you find humor in this, because I certainly don't!" she shouted, glancing back at the steadily approaching dragon and the blonde wizard attached to its feet. "So how do you plan to get _him_ free?"

"You're the brains, remember? I'm just winging it!"

"Great," sighed Hermione. "When Sophie gets back we need to try and make it drop him! It's really our only option!"

"Sounds like a plan!"

Sophie returned a minute later carrying only one broom. "I could not find Draco's! I zink 'e put eet somewhere before going eento ze caves! Draco, where deed you put your broom?" she shouted back at him.

"Can we please worry about that later? I'd really like to get off of this thing, if you don't mind!"

"'Ermione, 'ow deed you get over 'ere?" Sophie asked, completely ignoring him.

"Not important, Sophie! Could I have my broom, please?"

Sophie handed her the broom and Hermione climbed onto it as best she could, considering she was currently riding sidesaddle on another broom. She stumbled a little, but still made it on successfully.

"So what ees ze plan?" asked Sophie once Hermione was secure.

"We need all four of us to capture it, so, somehow, we need to get it to drop Draco!"

"Someone _is_ going to catch me, right?" they heard Draco call faintly from behind them. He had really good ears.

"YES!" they all shouted back at him.

Their plan was easier said than done. Phillip kept the chase going while Hermione and Sophie shot sparks at its feet but the bloody thing did not want to let Draco go. The dragon started ravaging around, swaying side to side so it was bumping both witches, eventually knocking Hermione off of her broom.

Phillip was unaware of what was going on behind him and Sophie was too busy trying to steady herself to dive for her. By the time she did Hermione was too far for her to catch. But just before she went flat on the ground a red and gold bird flew off of the cliffs, letting Hermione reach out and grab its tail. She looked up and recognized the smile on its beak immediately. It had been much smaller a few weeks ago, but this was definitely the baby phoenix who had healed her leg.

"Thank you again!" she shouted at the bird. It squawked back at her.

The phoenix put Hermione on the ground beside her broom. She was just about to pick it up again when she noticed the dragon flying a mere thirty feet above her. "Oh hell with this!" she said, taking off her rope. She began swinging it like a lasso, the rope growing with each turn. Once it was a good length she released it and caught the dragon clear around the neck.

"Nozing but net!" shouted an overjoyed Sophie.

Unaware of the rope, the dragon tried to fly higher into the sky, only to be whiplashed backwards. It was so surprised by this that it completely dropped Draco. Sophie flew after him and grabbed his hand long enough to slow his fall before dropping him again, but he still fell about twenty feet, rolling as he hit the ground. He used the momentum to his advantage and jumped to his feet, running over to Hermione and grabbing the broom beside her.

"Thanks, Hermione! Make sure to hold on tight!" He winked at the struggling witch before taking off into the air.

Phillip was currently trying to lasso the dragons back feet while Sophie baited it by sitting on her broom just out of its reach. She laughed as it growled and clawed at her with absolutely no success.

It took him two tries, but once Phillip had its back feet Sophie went for its front ones. Since it was still trying to get her they were in a good enough place for her to get them in one shot. Then Draco flew above the dragon to lasso its wings. This was the hardest part to capture since he had to time his shot perfectly. Right when the wings were coming back together. It took a few tries but eventually he got it. The moment he did they all let out shouts of glee, triumph and relief, none louder than Hermione, who had to keep the strongest hold on the dragon. This was real work, even with the magical rope.

Draco, Sophie, and Phillip lowered the dragon to the ground slowly. When it had landed they all jumped off their brooms and used their wands to magically bind the ropes to the ground. Trees and rocks seemed too unstable. Even with magic the dragon might be able to pull them out of place.

Once it was secure Draco and Phillip stayed with it while Hermione and Sophie went back for their supplies. Sophie got their backpack while Hermione went into the caves for the potion, making sure to steer clear of the water as she did so.

After she got the potion Hermione flew to the front of the cave to look for Draco's broom. He claimed to have left it inside of a tree near the entrance. It was easy enough to find, since there was only one tree with a hole in it around there. A squirrel was nibbling at it when she found it. She shooed it away and took the broom out of the hole, frowning as she did so. Draco would not be happy.

When she got back to the others Sophie was already holding the book and the golden ladle like trophies while Phillip was laying out the phials. Draco was busy trying to get the phoenix to fly off of the cliff, but it wouldn't come until it saw Hermione again. It flew over to her and started pecking at her cheek.

"Friend of yours?" asked Draco, walking over to her.

"Yes. This is the phoenix who healed my leg. Here's your broom," she said, handing it to him. Draco took it from her, his face dropping immediately. "Sorry. A squirrel got to it before I could."

"It's alright," he said in a strained voice.

"You should be able to polish those nips right out," said Hermione, trying to sound optimistic.

Draco nodded, but you could tell he knew better. Those 'nips' were pretty deep. The broom would definitely need more than polishing. It would be fine for the rest of the summer, but come fall it would need replacing.

Hermione, Draco, Sophie, Phillip and the phoenix all sat around the potion while Hermione opened _101 Uses for Undead Root_ and found their page. "So once the phoenix sheds its tear we need to stir the potion clockwise twenty times. Sophie, are you ready with the ladle?"

"Yes!" she said, holding it up proudly. Hermione had promised her yesterday that she could do this part. Sophie just really wanted to be involved.

"Good. Once that's done we will need to pour it into the phials immediately." She handed them out evenly to her, Draco and Phillip. They were going to take turns holding them for Sophie. "Could you give us a tear, please, Phoenix?" Hermione asked, turning towards the bird.

It gladly stepped forward and put its head on the edge of the cauldron, shedding one single tear into their potion. A golden cloud emerged, smelling like honey. The moment it was done the phoenix moved its head back and Sophie started stirring. After twenty turns they all held out phials for her to pour into. In the end they filled exactly fifteen of them.

"So 'ow are we supposed to get ze dragon to drink eet?" asked Sophie, glancing over at the angry beast. It did not like being tied up. They all looked to Hermione.

"I don't always have to be the brains, do I?"

They all nodded.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh fine." She picked up one of the phials, opened it and said, "_Wingardium Leviosa_!" Once it was floating she carefully moved it forward, shooting it into the dragon's mouth as soon as it opened it to roar. "Done!"

While she picked up the book and started casting the extraction spell the others grabbed every storage device imaginable for the heartstring. No one knew what it looked like, so it was impossible to say whether it would need a phial, a pouch, a jar, or something else entirely.

Near the end of her spell, Hermione could feel something tugging on her wand. She began to pull and before long a glowing blue string no wider than a hair emerged from the dragon's skin just over its heart. Sophie grabbed a small jar and brought it over to the string. Hermione carefully dropped it into it and Sophie snapped the lid on.

"We deed eet?" Sophie asked, looking hopefully at Hermione.

She smiled. "Yes. I believe we did."

"Yay! We deed eet!"

Sophie jumped up and down, pulling Draco and Phillip up from the ground so they could celebrate with her. Hermione took the jar from her and put it safely away in her backpack before joining the others in celebration. They had done the impossible! Captured the heartstring of a dragon! And with more than three weeks to spare! Wait … Hermione stopped jumping. Did this mean Mr. Ollivander expected them to do this _again_?

Sophie grabbed her hands and pulled her into a jump again. Oh well. She would worry about that later. Right now all she wanted to do was celebrate.

Despite their current situation, Draco still grabbed Hermione in a hug and swung her around, having to fight back the urge to kiss her.

But that didn't stop her from kissing his cheek. "The white knight strikes again," she whispered into his ear.

Hermione pulled back and stared into Draco's sparkling gray eyes. The two of them stayed like that for a long while, only looking away when they heard Sophie say, "So 'ow are we supposed to let ze dragon go?"

All joy left their group as they looked questioningly at the dragon. It was thrashing about, either trying to get loose or eat them. Probably both.

Huh. They hadn't thought about that.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: So happy to finally have written this part! I've had it in my head since I started this story :-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Several hours later the four of them sat at the Three Broomsticks, laughing over pints of butterbeer and photos they had all taken with the dragon before setting it free. In the end they had all gotten onto their brooms and released the ropes at the same time. They left them there, since they could always get another one, and flew for their lives. The phoenix helped a little by pecking at its eyes, but the dragon cared very minimally about a bird when four humans were in chomping distance. Eventually they all got away since the dragon wouldn't fly past the Purple Polly Flower field. One thing was certain; they wouldn't be going back there anytime soon.

When they got to the inn Madam Rosmerta was nowhere to be found. This was the first time any of them had come here without her being present.

Right around their second round the door flew open and Madam Rosmerta entered with puffy eyes and a blotchy face. She locked eyes with Draco right away and marched over to him, pulling him out of his chair and into a tight hug. Rosmerta cried into his shoulder while mumbling, "Thank you," repeatedly.

Draco wasn't sure what to do at first and looked to Hermione, who motioned for him to hug her back. He did as she instructed.

When Madam Rosmerta pulled away she looked at Draco and said, "Everything is on the house." Then she looked at Hermione. "You have a good wizard here. Stupid, but good. Hold onto him."

Hermione stared blankly at Rosmerta as she returned to the bar. When Draco sat back down she asked, "What did you do?"

Draco took a sip of his butterbeer before answering. "Her father has been suffering from a powerful Confundus Charm since the war," he said, putting down his drink. "She couldn't afford to send him to St. Mungo's so I sent Ruskle with a letter there demanding they take him free of charge as a sort of trial patient, since this is a rare ailment and there is currently no known cure. The Malfoy's have donated enough money to them over the years so they had no choice but to say yes."

"Why didn't you just pay for it?" asked Phillip.

"Rosmerta would never have accepted that. She might take a few galleons here and there, but housing a patient like him in St. Mungo's isn't cheap. This way no money is involved. She won't feel obligated to pay me back."

"I zink she steell feels obleegated," smiled Sophie. "Zat was very nice of you, Draco. Wasn't zat nice, 'Ermione?"

"Yes, very nice," she said, taking another sip of her drink. This whole white knight thing was getting out of control. How was she supposed to stay mad at him when he kept doing so much good?

A barmaid walked over and put four more mugs of butterbeer and a plate of various kinds of pastries on their table. "Compliments of the house."

Sophie's eyes lit up as she pulled a Purple Polly Flower out of nowhere. "Draco, you need to do nice zings more often!"

She had just picked up her first pastry and poured some purple sap on it when the door burst open again. This time an important looking wizard with fancy robes and premature salt and pepper hair entered. A pretty, dark-haired witch with bright blue eyes and freckles was on his arm while several large goons followed after them. Sophie and Phillip both gasped before ducking under the table, Sophie taking her pastry with her.

"Sophie, what's wrong?" asked Hermione, sticking her head down to look at them.

"Do not say my name!" she whispered harshly.

"Excuse me, aren't you Draco Malfoy?"

Hermione and Draco looked up to see the handsome couple standing beside their table with their bodyguards just behind them. "Yes, I am," Draco said confidently. "And you are?"

"Zandicus Thinx," he said, holding out his hand. Draco took it reluctantly. "And this is my fiancé, Chastity."

"Pleasure to meet you," she said, also holding her hand out. Draco was even more reluctant to take hers.

"Yes, I've heard of you," said Draco, looking at Zandicus. "Ran your fathers business into the ground only months after his death, if I recall."

Zandicus chuckled. "Yes, well, my father and I did not see eye to eye on many things. How to run a successful business was one of them. I know it was reported that Thinx went bankrupt, but really I pulled all of the money out of the company to make sure it went under."

Draco could feel Phillip tensing by his leg. He kicked him so he would know to keep quiet, but he missed and made Sophie yip. Chastity looked around curiously but Zandicus didn't seem to notice.

"Now I am working on building Thinx back up from the ground, only this time we won't waste any of our time and efforts on Muggle technology. It will all be focused on improving lives of purebloods. I was hoping to get a meeting with your father but have had a hard time getting a hold -"

"Do you _really_ think a purebloods life needs anymore improvement?" interrupted Hermione. "Why would you make them your focus when Muggle-born's have so many more needs?"

"I'm sorry, _who_ are you?" asked Zandicus, finally noticing her presence.

"This is Hermione Granger," said Draco.

"Oh! You're that Muggle-born who helped Harry Potter!" said Chastity brightly. "What a pleasure it is -"

"Chastity!" shouted Zandicus. She immediately shut her mouth. "I wasn't aware the Malfoy's had begun associating with Mudbloods."

Hermione was about to say a snappy comeback when Draco grabbed Zandicus by the arm and pulled him down so their faces were level. "Call her that again and you and I will have a real problem."

"I guess it's true what they say," said Zandicus, pushing Draco off of him. "The Malfoy's really have gone soft. You couldn't even properly support the Dark Lord when the time came."

Just then, Chastity's engagement ring - which she had been fidgeting with - fell off of her finger. "Sorry," she said, looking at her future husband.

"Well, aren't you going to get it?" he said harshly.

Chastity nodded before bending down and reaching for her ring. Phillip tried to back further under the table, but ended up pushing Sophie out the other side. After she squealed Chastity looked over and caught eyes with him. "Phillip?" she asked, unsure if she was seeing him correctly.

"Uhh … yeah," he said, climbing out from under the table. "Hi Chastity."

Hermione was helping Sophie up on the other side, who was very upset she had lost her pastry in the fall.

"_Sophie_!" said Chastity, narrowing her eyes at the other witch. "Are you two here _together_?"

Phillip and Sophie looked at each other blankly for a moment before slowly saying, "Yes."

"_Together_ together?"

Sophie said nothing. She was leaving this one up to Phillip. "Umm … yes. Yes we are," he said, reaching out for her. "We've been seeing each other for just over a month now."

"Ha!" said Zandicus, pulling his fiancé close. "I told you, darling. The two of them have been having an affair for years."

"We 'ave not!" shouted Sophie, nearly jumping over the table. Phillip held her back.

"I can't believe it. You _really_ did cheat on me."

"There was only one cheater during our marriage, Chastity, and it sure as hell wasn't me," said Phillip, scooting closer to Sophie, who loyally wrapped both of her arms around one of his, hugging it dotingly.

"Oh please," spat Chastity. "Can you honestly say you were never attracted to her while we were married?"

"_Of course_ I was attracted to her. Look at her. Who wouldn't be?"

Draco and several impartial observers mumbled their agreement. Even Hermione had to nod a little. Not only did Sophie have a gorgeous face, but her body was one most girls would kill for, even with all of the food she put into it. Sophie smiled smugly while everyone continued to praise her.

"But attraction does not equal cheating. I never acted on it."

"I honestly don't understand what a pureblood like you could ever see in a quarter-Muggle," said Zandicus, sneering at Sophie. "All I see when I look at her is a Mudblood."

Sophie's jaw dropped to the floor. Phillip took out his wand to hex Zandicus but Hermione beat him to it. "_Densaugeo_!"

Zandicus was pushed back as his teeth began to grow at an alarming rate.

"Hey, I taught you that!" said Draco, beaming.

They all laughed hysterically while Chastity tried to help her fiancé, but he pushed her off of him and let one of his goons shrink his teeth back down to a normal size.

Looking quite hurt, Chastity turned her brooding eyes to Hermione and shouted, "How dare you hex him you dirty Mudblood!"

Draco was already pulling out his wand when Hermione put her hand out to stop him. He looked at her pleadingly but she shook her head, motioning towards Phillip, who did not look well.

"What's happened to you, Chastity?"

"What do you mean? I'm the same as I've always been," she scoffed, trying really hard not to glance at the hold Sophie still had on Phillip's arm.

"No," said Phillip, slowly shaking his head. "No you're not. The woman I married was kind and thoughtful. She didn't think she was superior to anyone else and she would _never_ speak to someone that way. I don't even know who _you_ are."

"She's my future wife, that's who she is," said Zandicus, walking back over and putting his arm around her. "Don't listen to him, darling. Being married to a blood-traitor clouded your mind. Since you've met me you're finally seeing clearly. We _are_ superior."

"Are you for real?" asked Hermione with wide eyes. "You sound exactly like someone I used to know." She glanced sideways at Draco, who purposely avoided her gaze. "But he saw the error in his ways a long time ago. The world has changed and it's time for snotty, pureblood chauvinists to change with it."

"Malfoy, have you ever considered putting a muzzle on that thing?"

Those words were the last straw. Draco, Phillip and Sophie all took out their wands and shot various hexes and jinxes at Zandicus. His goons started reaching for their wands so Hermione hit two of them with Freezing Charms. Chastity shot a jinx at Sophie but Phillip pushed her out of the way, only to end up falling to the floor with jelly legs. Sophie crawled over to him and removed it immediately.

When Phillip was better Sophie kissed him quickly before leaping over the table and pouncing on Chastity. The two had an old-fashioned girl fight on the floor while Phillip and Zandicus started hexing each other.

Draco and one of the goons got in on it too, but when another goon came at them, Hermione shouted, "_Expelliarmus_!" sending both the wand and the wizard flying. "Sorry!" she yelled as he landed with a thump. "I just don't believe in giving one team the unfair advantage of greater numbers."

"'Ermione!"

Hermione looked over and saw Chastity had Sophie pinned to the ground and was currently trying to hex all her hair off. "Except in this case!" she added to her former argument before running over and casting a spell to pull Chastity off of Sophie.

"STOP! STOP!" shouted Madam Rosmerta. A hex flew by her ear and hit the bar patron behind her, who immediately sprouted antlers. "There are innocent people here! Physical fighting _only_!"

She didn't have to tell them twice. Everyone put their wands away and immediately started going at it. Hermione froze the last two goons just as they were coming for Phillip and Draco. There was no way she was letting them get in on the action. Once that was done she put her own wand away and went to help Sophie.

Hermione pulled Chastity back while Sophie slapped her clear across the face. "You know 'e never cheated on you!" She slapped her across the other cheek. "Stop telling lies to make yourself feel better! You messed up!"

"Get off of me!" shouted Chastity, ramming herself into Hermione, who fell backward. When she was free Chastity slapped Sophie back. "You don't deserve him you French harlot!"

"_I_ don't deserve 'im? What about you? You _never_ deserved 'im!" Sophie charged at Chastity. The two wrestled for a while before Sophie finally got her in a headlock. "Get 'er, 'Ermione!"

"What do you want me to do?" she asked, staring curiously at the struggling girl. "I'm not really a fighter, Sophie. Am I supposed to mess her hair up or something?"

"Eet does not matter! Teeckle 'er for all I care!"

And that's exactly what Hermione did. She tickled Chastity until the witch was screaming bloody murder.

"Okay, okay! Truce!" she spat between giggles. "Please just stop!"

Hermione stopped and Sophie released her. After Chastity straightened herself up she looked over at the boys and sighed. Draco was holding Zandicus while Phillip punched him in the left eye. The girls all took out their wands and froze their respective men, Chastity pointing her wand at Phillip for a moment before turning it to Zandicus.

"Now, when we unfreeze all of you, we expect everyone to be on zeir best be'avior. Understood?"

Draco, Phillip and Zandicus all did their best to mumble the word, yes. The girls countered their freezing charms. As soon as they did Phillip put his arms down and Draco released Zandicus. Once he was free the wizard took one last swing at Phillip, hitting him square on the jaw.

"Zandicus!" shouted Chastity.

"What? He deserved it."

Hermione shook her head at him while going around and unfreezing his goons. While she did this Madam Rosmerta walked over to Zandicus and said, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask your party to leave."

"What?" asked Chastity, walking over to them. "But we're staying here. This is supposed to be our romantic getaway."

"Guess you should've thoughta that before you started a fight in my pub."

"What about them?" asked Zandicus, motioning towards Phillip, Sophie, Draco and Hermione.

"They get to stay," said Rosmerta looking over at them.

"Why?"

Rosmerta looked back to Zandicus and smiled. "I like them. I'll give you a full refund, of course. Now go and get your things. I want you out of here before I'm finished passing out a free round of butterbeers!" she shouted. Everyone cheered.

Zandicus sneered at Madam Rosmerta before calling his goons and sending them up the stairs. He grabbed Chastity's hand and pulled her along after them.

"Guess you won't be getting that meeting with my father anytime soon," said Draco, who smiled smugly as they passed him.

Draco and Phillip sunk down onto two of the closest chairs while Sophie went back to their table to gobble down one of their pastries. Hermione immediately went to work on healing her cuts and bruises. Being a good friend to a girl like Sophie was hard. She _never_ had to do stuff like this with Ginny and Luna.

"Thanks for having my back tonight, mate," said Phillip leaning back in his chair. "I'm pretty sure I'm stronger than Zandicus but, as you can tell, the wizard likes to play dirty."

"No problem," said Draco, trying to heal a cut on his hand. There was an awkward pause. Draco could tell Phillip wanted to say something, so he asked, "What's on your mind, Phil?"

"You know I hate it when you call me that."

"That's why I say it," he said smiling.

Phillip chuckled. "You really are a smartass. Despite that I still really need to say this." Draco waited. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For … you know … what I said in Brazil. About you being worthless and all. It was all just in the heat of the moment. I didn't mean it."

"It's fine," said Draco.

"No, it really isn't. You're not worthless, Draco. You're a good wizard," he said smiling. "Granted, I still don't think you're good enough for Hermione, but that's not my call. It's hers."

"Are you boys finally playing nice?" asked Sophie taking a seat on Phillip's lap. "Deed you apologize?"

"Yes," answered Phillip.

"Uh, _finally_!" she exclaimed. "'E 'as been wanting to do zat for over a monz now. 'Ow are you feeling, mon cherie?"

"Could be worse," he laughed.

"Well, now zat I got some sugar een my system I weell 'ave to feex you up. But I could use anozer kind of sugar first." Sophie leaned down and kissed him passionately, only pulling away when she heard someone scoff. They all turned to see Zandicus pulling Chastity along while his goons followed closely behind with their stuff. Chastity appeared to be on the verge of tears. This made Sophie smile.

Once they were gone Sophie turned to Draco and asked, "What are you steell doing over 'ere? You should be checking on 'Ermione."

Draco immediately got up and walked over to where Hermione was sitting. She was currently pulling her pants up and trying to heal a large bruise on her leg.

"Need any help with that?"

Hermione looked up and smiled when she saw Draco's familiar gray eyes. "I don't know. _Can_ you help me? I'm better at healing charms than you are."

"I don't disagree, but they are always easier to do on someone else than they are to do on yourself."

"Then by all means," she said, motioning to her leg.

Draco knelt down and cast a healing charm on her leg. The dark bruise immediately started fading into nothing but a slightly pink mark. "Better?" he asked, looking up into her hopeful eyes.

Hermione gulped. "Much." They continued to stare at each other for a moment before Hermione said, "I'm really sorry about what I said yesterday."

"Have I really stomped on your heart repeatedly?"

Hermione chuckled lightly. "Maybe a little. You've been very hot and cold this summer."

"I don't mean to be. Maybe insanity runs in my family."

"You're not insane, Draco. You're just … complicated."

Draco smiled. "Is there any chance we can go back to the way things were?"

"I don't know …"

Suddenly, Sophie's words reentered Hermione's head. "Get over eet." They repeated several times before she looked over and noticed Sophie was using a voice throwing charm. The witch immediately looked away and played innocent. Hermione smiled and shook her head.

Looking back to Draco, Hermione added, "But maybe we could try."

That was enough to make Draco lean up and grab Hermione's head, pulling it to meet his for a kiss. While they were mid lip-lock they saw a flash. Both turned to see a familiar looking cameraman snapping their photo. It popped out of the camera instantly.

Hermione's eyes grew wide. "You're Rita Skeeter's photographer, Bozo, aren't you? Are you the one who snapped our photo in Minsk?"

"Uhh … me no speak English. On holiday. Yeah, that's right! I'm on holiday!"

Draco looked at him curiously. "Are you thick? If you're going to play the no English card then, please, do us all a favor and stick with it."

Hermione stood up and walked over to him. "We're going to need you to give us that photo."

"No speak English! Holiday! Holiday!"

"Give us that photo!" Hermione tried to wrestle it away from him but he pulled it out of her hands, accidentally knocking her back. This sent Draco over the edge. He lunged forward and tore half of the photo out of the man's hands before knocking him backwards.

A beetle jumped off of Hermione. She spotted it immediately. "Catch that beetle!" she shouted to whoever was listening. Sophie immediately jumped off of Phillip's lap and started chasing it with her. Hermione grabbed an empty mug off of one of the tables and followed the bug into the back. "I'm going to get you, you horrible woman!"

"'Ermione, 'ave you gone mad?"

The beetle ducked into the girl's washroom. Hermione threw the door open just in time to see Rita Skeeter changing back to her human form.

"An Aneemagus!" shouted Sophie. "While I am quite eempressed, I 'ave zis sinking feeling zat I 'ate you."

"Yes, you do!" yelled Hermione. "She's the one who wrote that article about me and Draco in the _Prophet_!"

"You _beetch_!"

"While I'd like to say it is a pleasure to see you again, Ms. Granger, I'm afraid I have a deadline." Rita pushed past them and headed back to the main room of the pub.

"Oh no you don't!" shouted Hermione, chasing after her. "If you publish that article I swear I will turn you in this time! I mean it!"

"I'm afraid the article has already been written."

"Then change it!"

"Why do you care? I thought the two of you were official now?"

Hermione gasped. How could she have known that? "_What did you see_?" she asked, eyes flaring.

Rita smiled. "Oh relax. I'm a journalist, not a pervert. The most I can promise you is no names."

"We'll take it," said Draco, suddenly appearing beside them.

"Wha -"

"It's fine, Mione. We're the ones with the better half of the photo," he said, holding up a picture off the top half of their heads really close together and then looking at the camera." Rita looked longingly at the photo. She reached her hand out for it but Draco hit it away. "No names," he repeated.

Rita stared sharply at him before saying, "Fine. _No_ names. We got plenty of photos from earlier we can use, anyway."

"None as good as this one." He smirked while waving it in front of her face.

Rita snuffed before exiting with Bozo closely at her heels. Phillip came over and put his arm around Sophie while Draco reached out and grabbed Hermione's hand in his. All of them were dreading the letter and copy of the _Daily Prophet_ they were undoubtedly going to get from Mr. Ollivander in the morning.

16


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: Short but sweet**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Just as expected, Draco and Hermione were woken up the next morning by Mr. Ollivander's owl pecking on their window. They had both stayed in her room at the inn, being as they had made up and it was right there and all. Plus, Draco really wanted to collect his winnings from their bet. Hermione didn't argue and was much better at the thing she never did than he expected.

Draco got out of bed reluctantly and let the owl in. It swooped around and dropped a letter and a copy of the _Daily Prophet_ on their bed before flying back out with a spare copy. It returned a minute later for the dragon heartstring before disappearing yet again.

Hermione sat up and opened the letter first:

_Good morning team,_

_ Another great show last night. The Daily Prophet really seems to like all of you. Next summer I am probably going to have to hire less known faces if I plan to keep discretion. But, for now, I'm enjoying reading all about your exciting yet exaggerated lives. Well done!_

_ Enjoy the day because tomorrow I'm having the four of you travel to Romania. The dragon facility there has agreed to let us acquire heartstrings from some of their top dragons. I will send you directions in the morning._

_Sincerely,_

_Ollivander_

When she was through, Draco took a seat next to her on the bed and they opened the _Daily Prophet_ together. They were immediately greeted with a lovely photo of Zandicus and Phillip shooting hexes at each other with the back of Draco's head jinxing a goon, and a wrestling Sophie and Chastity in the background. At one point Hermione ran through with her wand raised high, probably freezing one of the goons. Her face wasn't visible, but if someone who knew Hermione saw it there was no mistaking it was her.

"Wow, they just got us all in there, didn't they?" laughed Draco.

Hermione frowned. Unfortunately, they had. If only she had been more observant the night before. With witches like Rita Skeeter around she needed to never let her guard down, since Rita had just about proven she was always watching.

Draco moved down the page and read the article aloud:

_ It was a battle of the Purebloods last night when a romantic getaway in Hogsmeade turned ugly. Pureblood wizard and entrepreneur, Zandicus Thinx, along with his fiancé, Chastity Hanson, ran into a pair of uninvited guests at the Three Broomsticks Inn, writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent. Hanson's ex-husband and former employee of Thinx Inc., Pureblood Phillip Prior, was also having a romantic getaway with French, Muggle-born beauty, and fellow former employee of Thinx Inc., Sophie Labelle._

"I am _not_ a Muggle-born!" they heard Sophie shout from the across the hall. Draco and Hermione looked at each other and laughed. Apparently, they were reading the same part.

"There is nothing wrong with being Muggle-born, Sophie!" Hermione shouted back at her.

"Sorry, 'Ermione! No offense eentended!"

Draco looked back to the article and continued reading:

_ While some may see this as a chance meeting, the rumored affair between Prior and Labelle during his marriage to Hanson, and his ex-wife's quick engagement to his former boss, have this reporter believing otherwise. While the encounter between jilted exes began as nothing more than a battle of words, it quickly became much more._

_ "It started out innocent enough," said fellow bar patron, Gary Goose, "but then that fancy wizard called the big one's girl a (foul word for Muggle-borns). The next thing you know a jinx is flying at me and I'm sprouting antlers." Goose had the antlers removed shortly after but the pain of this traumatic experience will stay with him forever._

_ Thinx, Hanson, Prior, Labelle, and their unnamed party members shot various jinxes and hexes at each other until the owner of the Three Broomsticks Inn, Madam Rosmerta, put a stop to it. After that physical, Muggle fighting commenced._

_ In the end no one was seriously injured, but it does not look like Hanson and Prior will be reminiscing about old times over a mug of butterbeer anytime soon._

_ Throughout all of this mischief, Prior and Labelle were accompanied by an anonymous Pureblood wizard and Muggle-born witch, who are another devoted couple attempting to cross that prejudiced threshold._

_(See page 5)_

Draco turned the page. Both he and Hermione gasped when they came face to face with the photo of them kissing, only now the top half of their heads had been replaced with distorted, animated versions of themselves. Below it was a caption that read: _Due to the requested anonymity of the parties at hand, faces have been altered to protect their identities._

"I'll kill her!" spat Hermione. Her hands clenched the sheets of their bed as four large pairs of Japanese anime eyes kept whipping around and staring back at her.

Draco took several deep breaths before he even attempted to continue reading:

_ The anonymous wizard, or the Pureblood Prince, is a very prominent member of the wizarding community and well known for his family's devotion to Pureblood rights over Muggle-born's. His alleged romance with the anonymous witch, or the Muggle-born Minx, began earlier this summer when the two went on holiday together. They have been inseparable ever since._

_ Speculation is that the only reason Thinx took Hanson on this romantic getaway to Hogsmeade was because the Pureblood Prince was rumored to be there. Whether Thinx knew Pureblood Prince was accompanied by Prior or not has yet to be determined._

_ "That haughty wizard caught wind that (Pureblood Prince) has been in town for over a week with his girlfriend," said Madam Puddifoot, a town local and owner of Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop. "He went into every shop asking about him, completely ignoring his lovely fiancé. The whole thing is my fault. I'm the one who told him to try the Three Broomsticks."_

_ Ever since Thinx ran his father's business and legacy into the ground two years ago he has been trying to mooch money off of more successful witches and wizards to uphold his extravagant lifestyle. Luckily, Pureblood Prince did not fall for it and sent the racist chauvinist on his way._

_ While wizards like Thinx still exist in our world, it is encouraging to know that not all Purebloods think like he does. Some, like Prior and Pureblood Prince, are brave enough to ignore titles placed on them by society and find love in the most unlikely of places. While racism is still very prominent in the wizarding world today, there is still hope for a better tomorrow._

When Draco and Hermione finished reading they looked at each other, then frowned down at the article. While they wanted to hate it, it was really hard to do considering the moral of it all.

"Since when has Rita Skeeter started writing something relevant to the world?" asked Draco, tossing the paper aside. "She had to choose _now_ to make a valid point?"

"Well, that's easy for the 'Pureblood Prince' to say. How exactly am I a _minx_?"

Draco laughed before pouncing on top of her. "You're definitely my little minx."

The two engaged in some hardcore snogging before they heard a double '_Pop_!'

"Really? You two are at it now? It's seven-thirty in the morning!"

Draco moved off of Hermione and the two of them looked over to see Phillip and Sophie standing at the foot of their bed, Sophie still flaring while looking at the article.

"Don't tell me you two have become a frigid, old, married couple already?" joked Draco. He sat up and pulled Hermione close to him.

"Deed you two read all of zis?" asked Sophie, waving her copy of the _Daily Prophet_ at them.

"Yes," they both answered.

"Zen why are you not more upset about zis? Eet ees completely obvious she was talking about you, despite zat 'orrible alteration of your photo."

"I thought it was kind of cute," laughed Phillip, taking the paper from her and opening to page five. "It might be less obvious if she changed your coloring a bit. Draco's hair is a dead giveaway."

"While I'm angry that Rita Skeeter used us all as poster children for her star-crossed lover twist, I can't be mad at the overall voice of the article," said Hermione, leaning deeper into Draco's chest.

"Yeah, and she made Zandicus and Chastity look like rats while we all came out smelling like roses. So what if a few people think you're a Muggle-born, Soph. You _are_ part Muggle."

"Eet ees not just zat," said Sophie, tearing the article back out of his hands. "Even zough ze majority of ze article ees een our favor, she steell made eet seem like you and I 'ad an affair! I am seeck of people believing zose lies!"

"Who cares what other people think, Sophie?" encouraged Hermione. "As long as _you_ know you didn't have an affair, why should anyone else matter?"

"You do not understand, 'Ermione! You could tell people your mozer was a rabbeet and zey would believe you, but when ze rumors first started about me and Phillipe even my own parent's deed not believe me when I told zem eet was not true! I am not a 'omewrecker, so why ees everyone so queeck to believe zat I am?"

_Pop!_

Phillip frowned over at the spot Sophie just was. "Guess I better go take care of this. I assume you two also got a letter about Romania?" Hermione and Draco nodded. Phillip smiled. "And the shenanigans continue. See you at dinner tonight?" They nodded again.

_Pop!_

As soon as Phillip was gone Hermione jumped out of the bed and started getting dressed.

"Where are you off to?" asked Draco, grabbing her hand and trying to pull her back to the bed. "More damage control?" Merlin, he hoped not.

Hermione pushed him off. "No, of course not." She knew she should have been more concerned about Ron seeing the article but, for some reason, she really wasn't. "There's just something I have to do before we leave tomorrow." She leaned over and gave him a kiss. When she pulled away she looked into his eyes and said, "Meet me by the tent at noon." It was a demand, not a request.

And with that Hermione was gone, leaving Draco to entertain himself for a couple of hours. It was getting to the point where he didn't know what to do without her around. What did he used to do for fun? Ahh! Now he remembered. He would find girls and shag them. Well, he'd done that already. Now what?

XXX

Draco arrived at their tent right at noon. He was so bored he thought about coming earlier, in hopes that Hermione would already be there, but he didn't want her to know how dependent he was becoming on her, so he waited.

When he got there she was nowhere to be found. He waited on a rock until she came skipping from around the back of the tent. "Great, you're here!" she said, pulling him to his feet. "I need to show you something."

Hermione dragged him around the tent and to a cave just behind it. Standing in the entrance was a large Hippogriff who looked skeptically at Draco as he arrived. Draco stared back at it blankly for a moment before he realized he had met this Hippogriff before.

"Isn't this the Hippogriff that attacked me? You call him Buckbeak, right?"

"Yes," answered Hermione. "I lied to you earlier this summer when you asked me what happened to him, so I wanted to clear the air. This is Buckbeak. He lives in the Forbidden Forest when not with Hagrid, and I believe you won't have him executed by knowing that."

"You little liar," smiled Draco while moving closer to her. "And during twenty questions. That is the ultimate taboo, Mione. What else have you lied to me about?"

"Well … now that you mention it. Do you remember in Minsk when I thought I saw that beetle in the tent and I told you it was nothing?" Draco nodded, putting both of his hands on her hips. "I didn't actually do that because I was paranoid a beetle was watching us. I was paranoid Rita Skeeter was watching us. During the Triwizard Tournament I discovered that she was an unregistered animagus and used that information to blackmail her into only writing truthful articles about Harry. It seems I've lost my hold on her."

"_Lies, blackmail, deceit_. Is it wrong that all of this is turning me on?"

"Sort of," laughed Hermione, throwing her arms around his neck. "But, if we could be serious for just a moment I'd really appreciate it."

Draco smiled at her before leaning down and kissing her on the cheek. "I appreciate your honesty, Mione. We said no more lies between us and I'm glad I wasn't the only one doing it. You would have made an excellent Slytherin."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Could you just pet Buckbeak without insulting him already?"

Draco smirked and kissed her forehead. "My pleasure."

He walked over to the Hippogriff, made eye contact and bowed. Then he waited. Buckbeak stared back at him for several seconds before bowing himself. Draco looked over at Hermione and smiled before walking up to the Hippogriff and petting it.

"You know, you actually are sort of cool," said Draco, moving his hand along the creature's neck. "Sorry I insulted you back in the day. I was a bit of an arse back then."

Hermione laughed. "Brown nosing much?"

"Oh shut it," he said back at her. "Any chance this thing will give us a ride?"

Hermione's eyes bugged out as she stood frozen. She was still recovering from her first ride on Buckbeak and had little interest in doing it again. But when the Hippogriff bent down and Draco looked back at her with hopeful eyes she knew she didn't have a choice. He took her hand and helped her up before climbing on himself. Buckbeak swiftly took off into the air.

He took them all around the area. They swooped through the Forbidden Forest and over the lake, flying low enough for Draco to lean down and run his hands through the water. When a giant squid leg popped out and grabbed for him Buckbeak flew higher before it could get him. Hermione held onto Draco's waist for dear life the entire time. Even after they landed back at the tent she was afraid to let go. Draco had to pry her hands off of him before jumping off, reaching back up and scooping her into his arms.

"Never again?" he asked, laughing while she clung to his neck.

"_Never again_," she said, nuzzling into him.

Draco let her relax in his arms for a minute. She began nibbling on his ear, then traced her tongue along his neck. He put her down and began to run his hands up and down her body, finally turning so that her lips met his. The two slammed against the rock wall behind them. Draco already had his hands up Hermione's shirt when she stopped him.

"Draco, wait. Before we get too heated we need to go to Hogwarts and thank everyone for all of their help."

Draco grunted. "Do we really have to do that now?"

Hermione smiled before gently pushing him off of her. "Yes, now. We both know once you get going there's no stopping you, and before either of us realizes it the entire day is gone. I refuse to let that happen."

"Let me understand something, Mione. You think this only happens when _I_ get going? Don't play innocent. You know you're just as bad."

"I am not!" she yelled, pulling him along with her as she walked towards Hogwarts. "Thank you for the ride, Buckbeak."

"Yes, thank you." Draco turned and smiled at the Hippogriff. When he spun back towards Hermione he said, "Come on, Mione. Don't you see the irony in a minx claiming to be a prude?"

"Draco Malfoy, if you call me that again I swear I'll withhold sex for the rest of the summer."

Draco smirked at her. "No you won't. _Minx_," he baited.

"Oh, you've done it now! Withholding starts now!"

That lasted all of thirty minutes. When Hermione and Draco arrived at Hogwarts they decided to take one last walk around the school before leaving it again for what would probably be years. Draco made sure they 'accidentally' walked right by the Slytherin dormitories, where he proceeded to seduce Hermione and fulfill his window fantasy. His nemesis, the giant squid, was not amused, but he was.

After that the two stopped by Slughorn's office to thank him for all of his help, and then to the Headmistresses office where Draco had a very pleasant conversation with Dumbledore's and Snape's portraits while Hermione and McGonagall chatted over a cup of tea.

Hermione glanced over at Draco several times and smiled at his joyful face. She realized now that they should have come up here much sooner. While she had been given plenty of time to catch up with her favorite professors, he had never gotten the chance to speak to his. A man whose self-sacrifice saved thousands of lives, including his.

On their way out Draco seemed happier than he'd been in a while. They were just about to head out the doors and over to Hagrid's cabin when Draco pulled Hermione towards the Astronomy Tower.

He sat down on the stairs and pulled her between his legs, wrapping his arms around her waist. "You've done a lot of things for me this past week, Mione. Dragging me up these stairs was one of them."

"There were demons up there, Draco, and you needed to face them. I'm just glad you were brave enough to go up there. You've really come a long way."

"I really have. And I know it's all thanks to you." Draco removed his hands from Hermione's waist and grabbed her scarred arm, stroking the faint word with his fingertips. "That's why I want to help you get over your demons."

Hermione tried to pull her arm away but Draco kept a firm grip on it. "Draco, wha -"

"At the end of the summer I want you to come to Malfoy Manor with me. That's where you were given these scars and that's where you need to go to conquer them."

"Draco … I … I don't think -"

"Don't say no just yet. We have a few weeks. Take some time and think about it. But I believe it will be good for you."

"But won't your mother hex me upon arrival?"

Draco chuckled and wrapped his arms back around her waist. "Don't worry. I'll make sure she doesn't."

"So … so you really want me to go there?" asked Hermione, casting her eyes to the floor.

Draco lifted her chin and said, "Of course. Why wouldn't I?"

"I don't know. I guess part of me still worries that you're embarrassed by me."

"Hermione, if I were embarrassed by you don't you think I'd be stressing a bit more about the Pureblood Prince and the Muggle-born Minx pretty much going public today?" he said, chuckling. "Everyone is going to know it's us."

"I know," she said, rubbing her hands along his arms. "I guess we should have known better than to actually believe we could keep this a secret."

"It worked well enough in the beginning, but once that Rita Skeeter caught our scent."

"I blame the vampires," laughed Hermione, leaning her forehead against his shoulder. "I promise I will think about it, Draco, but for now I don't even want to think about summer being over. All I want is to enjoy the time we have left."

Draco nodded and kissed her cheek, but he couldn't help but question the way she said that. 'The time we have left'. Did that mean she was still going back to Weasel at the end of the summer? Draco dreaded the thought, but he hid it well. Hermione didn't seem to notice anything was wrong as she pulled him off of the stairs and out of the school towards Hagrid's.

Their visit with Hagrid was brief since he was still mad at them, but when they finally got up to leave he wept like a baby, grabbing both of them in the tightest hug Draco had ever received. Fang tackled him and proceeded to lick his face repeatedly until Hagrid pulled the giant dog off of him and held him steady while Draco and Hermione made their escape.

They decided to pack up their tent now so they could get an even earlier start in the morning. When it was all done they had just enough time to drop everything off at their room before meeting Sophie and Phillip for dinner. Sophie had calmed down a lot but she still seemed upset, especially since they were most likely going to see Annaleigh the next day.

"Ze leettle twat weell never let us 'ear ze end of eet."

"Oh, come on, Soph. I'm sure it won't be that bad," said Phillip while rubbing her back comfortingly. "And, besides, you can't be too hard on Anna. If it wasn't for her showing up that night I probably would've gone home with one of those Muggle girls and you would've shagged that Daniel guy. You and I might never have happened."

"I suppose zat ees true …"

It took a little persuading and a lot of alcohol but eventually Sophie calmed down and had a good time.

After dinner they all went straight to bed, but Hermione couldn't sleep. She kept tossing and turning, wondering if she had made a mistake by not trying to contact Ron today, or if she had made an even bigger mistake by not taking Draco up on his offer to go to Malfoy Manor with him immediately. She knew this was him reaching out to her, but she just didn't know how to reach back.

Sometime just after midnight Hermione felt Draco roll from his side of the bed over to hers, throwing his arm over her and squeezing her into a spooning position. He mumbled her name in his sleep and then he breathed, "I love you," into her ear.

Hermione's heart stopped. At first she questioned if she'd heard him right, but she knew she had. Draco Malfoy loved her. It may have just been in his sleep but it was during this time that people were thought to be the most honest with themselves.

Hermione wiped a tear from her cheek as she squeezed herself tighter against Draco. She wasn't sure what scared her more, knowing that Draco loved her or knowing that she just might love him back.

16


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: I'm sorry this chapter is sooooo long but there was no good place to split it!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The next morning Hermione decided that the best thing she could do was pretend nothing ever happened. Chances were Draco wasn't even aware of his feelings, so why bring up something he had no control over? The best solution for all of this was deny, deny, deny! If she kept telling herself she didn't love him then eventually it would stop being true. Right?

"Good morning," smiled Draco as he grabbed her and rolled her on top of him, staring deeply into her eyes before meeting her for a sweet kiss. Hermione sighed. This was going to be harder than she thought. "What's wrong?" he asked, pulling away from her.

"Nothing," she answered. She climbed out of the bed and started digging through her backpack for some clothes.

Draco knew she was lying but didn't try to question it again. Hermione was entitled to her privacy, as much as it was killing him not knowing every little thing.

After both of them were dressed they went downstairs to breakfast. Sophie and Phillip were already there and feeding each other all lovey-dovey like.

"You two repulse me," said Draco, dropping down in a chair. Hermione sat down next to him and he wrapped his arm around her waist. She tensed up at first, but eventually relaxed and sunk into him. She knew she was being ridiculous.

Madam Rosmerta came over and brought them both pumpkin juices before they even ordered. "I heard a rumor you're all heading out of town today. Any truth to it?"

"Yes. I'm afraid Romania calls," said Draco.

"Sure will be quiet around here once you four are gone. What will the rest of us do for entertainment?" She winked.

Hermione smiled. "Well, what did you do before we arrived?"

"You know, I'm not sure. Not much of anything, I think."

Rosmerta took Draco and Hermione's orders and headed for the kitchen. A few minutes later Mr. Ollivander's owl flew in with some customers and dropped a letter on their table. Sophie picked it up and read through it between bites of pancakes.

"Viff pwafe wooks faw."

"Chew your food first, darling," said Phillip, smiling.

Sophie gulped down her bite. "Sorry, mon cherie. I said zis place looks far. Even eef we leave now we probably weell not get zere teell after dark."

"Is there an estimated timeframe in his letter at all?" asked Hermione. "It would be nice to know if this was a day long mission or if we'll be spending more than a week somewhere again."

"Are you already anticipating getting rid of us?" joked Phillip.

Sophie chuckled and rubbed her nose against his cheek. "Of course zey are, darling. Zey want to spend zeir last few weeks alone togezer."

"Well, that's just not true," defended Hermione, even though it really was.

"Do not worry, 'Ermione. We are not offended."

"Yeah. We find you two as repulsive as you find us."

"I really don't understand how that can be," said Draco. "The two of us don't sit around feeding each other and rubbing noses like bunnies. Well, not unless we're mocking someone."

Sophie rolled her eyes. "You see, zat ees exactly why you two are perfect for each ozer. You boz 'ave zis sense of superiority. Just because Phillipe and I are more affectionate zan you does not make us worse people."

"Well said, darling." Phillip and Sophie high-fived each other.

"You see? Why do you guys keep doing that?" asked Draco. "You're lovers, not frat boys."

Phillip and Sophie looked at each other and smirked. "Do you really want to know?" asked Phillip.

Draco and Hermione looked at each other inquisitively before nodding. They couldn't imagine their answer being anything too inappropriate. It was a high-five, not heavy petting.

"Well, ze first time we slept togezer eet was really 'ard to stay een ze mood seence you two were fighting so loudly," started Sophie.

This triggered Hermione's memory. The morning after hers and Draco's big fight in France Sophie and Phillip had said they heard them fighting, but couldn't hear what it was about. Now she knew it was because they had a hard time making out words between moans.

"When you two finally shut up we ended up climaxing at ze same time, so we 'igh-fived."

"It kind of stuck after that," laughed Phillip.

Hermione stared blankly at them. "So … every time you two sleep together …"

"We 'igh-five at ze end, yes," said Sophie beaming. "You two should try eet sometime. You are boz competiteeve and eet makes eet seem like a game."

"I thought it was a game," smirked Draco. They all laughed.

After they all finished breakfast they went upstairs to collect their backpacks and brooms. Before leaving Draco found Madam Rosmerta and gave her several more galleons. She was more reluctant to take them this time, but he insisted. She eventually gave in and walked them all to the door. She gave both him and Hermione a hug as they exited, making sure to pull Hermione extra close and whisper, "You're the best thing for him, dear. Don't let him go." Hermione didn't say anything back. She just smiled at the barmaid and left.

Sophie hadn't been wrong about this place being far. They had flown greater distances before, but normally had at least some assistance from the Floo network or a portkey. Plus, it was very well hidden. They had to travel through a lot of uncharted territory to get there.

When they arrived the sun had already begun to set. The dragon facility was located in some mountains in the middle of nowhere. It was a large, stone building that seemed to go on for miles. The doors were large and engraved with intricate scenes of wizards fighting dragons.

"Do we knock?" asked Draco, landing his broom by the door.

"I do not see why not," said Sophie, landing beside him. She immediately started banging on the door.

Within seconds the doors flew open and a familiar blonde witch emerged from the inside. She smiled when she saw all of them. "Oh hi. We all met in the desert," she said, holding out her hand. "I'm Jen."

"Yes, we remember," said Hermione, taking her hand first. "How are you?"

"Wonderful, now that you're all here. We've been anticipating your arrival all day."

Draco narrowed his eyes at her. "Why?"

Jen gave them a mischievous smirk. "Well, you're all kind of famous around here. Everyone just loved the article on you guys in the _Daily Prophet_. Especially Anna."

Sophie groaned.

Jen looked at her and then glanced over at Phillip. "Is it true about you two? Anna's been absolutely livid. No one in her family has been able to get a hold of Chastity to ask if it's true or not. She's kind of disappeared off of everyone's radar."

"Disappeared?" asked Phillip, looking concerned. "Has her mum tried to get a hold of her?"

"I think so, but she hasn't gotten back to her."

"That's not like her …"

Sophie looked horribly offended by Phillip's concern over his ex-wife. Phillip didn't notice but Hermione and Draco both did. They looked at each other and gave a knowing nod before Hermione said, "Could you please show us our way now, Jen? It's been a long journey and we're all very tired."

"Oh …" Jen looked from Phillip to Sophie and realized she already had her answer. "Oh, yes, of course. Follow me."

They all followed her through the doors, which magically shut behind them. They walked down a long, stone corridor with green and gold carpet lining the way. Enchanted torches floated just above their heads.

They eventually came upon two large, wooden doors that opened upon arrival. Just behind them was a room with a number of large fireplaces that seemed to be designed specifically for the Floo network. There were several doors in this room. They took the farthest one on the left and headed down another, smaller, hallway. Jen took them into the third door on the right. Just behind it was a sitting room with perhaps a dozen bodies in it. Everyone looked up from what they were doing as they entered, smiled and applauded.

"We all just loved your article!" some random wizard shouted.

"Please tell us you were able to punch that fascist in the face!" a familiar blonde wizard, similar in appearance to Jen, called out. They all remembered his name was Jay.

"Of course 'e deed," Sophie said proudly.

Phillip smiled at her before reaching out and grabbing her hand. Not even a second later the far door flew open and Anna came barreling into the room with Charlie at her heels. She locked eyes with Phillip immediately, then looked down at his and Sophie's clasped hands. Neither of them tried to hide it.

"Of course," she huffed. "Because that is just the sort of day I'm having."

Without giving them a second look she went over to one of the couches and fell into it. It looked like Charlie was going to follow her, but instead he walked over to where the new arrivals still stood with Jen.

"Hello Hermione," he said without looking at her. "I trust you've been well."

"Uh, yes … very well, thank you. And how have you been?"

"Also well." Charlie glanced sideways at Draco, who was making a point to look everywhere in the room but at him. "Jen, I'll go ahead and take them from here. You should probably go and check on Annaleigh."

Jen nodded and said goodbye before joining her friend on the couch.

"Please, follow me," said Charlie, leading them through the door he had just come from. They walked through several more doors and hallways before entering a small room with four single beds. "I hope you all don't mind sharing. We're a little short on space right now with all of the summer interns."

"Oh, zis weell be fun!" exclaimed Sophie. "Not once zis summer 'ave ze four of us gotten to share a room, even when we were using ze tents." She immediately claimed the bed by the window. Hermione took the one across from her and Draco and Phillip took the beds beside their particular witches.

"Uh, Phillip, would you mind if I had a word with you in private?" Charlie asked.

Phillip looked at Sophie, who shrugged. "You might as well just say it now. Everyone here is aware of my and Anna's situation."

"Okay then," said Charlie, glancing around the room. "I just thought you should know why Annaleigh's so upset right now. "The morning the article came out Chastity contacted her parents through the Floo. She was in hysterics, but before they could find out what was wrong she freaked out about something that was going on behind her and disappeared. No one has heard from her since."

"Do zey zink she ees 'urt?" asked Sophie, stepping forward. "Zandeecus ees a bastard but I do not believe 'e as eet een 'im to actually 'arm Chasteety. I am sure eet ees nozing, Phillipe." She put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Has anyone tried to go to his place and check on her?" asked Phillip, looking both concerned and confused.

"Yes but no one is home. They apparently went somewhere else after Hogsmeade, but no one knows where. Annaleigh has been really upset. No one in her family has ever trusted him."

"I see …" said Phillip, staring blankly at the floor. "Thank you for telling me. I'm sure Anna has no interest in speaking with me, so if you hear anything -"

"I'll let you know right away."

Thanks," said Phillip, sinking onto the closest bed.

Sophie sat beside him and rubbed her hands soothingly along his back. "Eet weell be alright, mon cherie," she whispered into his ear. "I am sure of eet. Chasteety weell turn up."

A bell chimed in the room. All but Charlie looked around for the source of the noise. "That means it's time for dinner," he said. "It's just this way." He motioned out the door.

Sophie stood up and headed out first, pulling Phillip behind her. Draco followed them out, but before Hermione could leave Charlie grabbed her arm, leaned in and whispered, "Ron saw the article." Hermione forgot how to breathe as she looked over at Charlie with wide eyes. "My family tried to hide it from him like they did with the last one but, as it turns out, he saw that one too. This time he was just too angry to play along with their games. I'm sorry."

Hermione opened her mouth to say something, but before she could Sophie poked her head back in the room and asked, "Are you two coming?"

Hermione said, "Yes," before whispering back to Charlie, "We'll talk about this later."

Charlie nodded and exited the room, leading the four of them to the main dining hall.

This whole place was kind of like a mini Hogwarts. Everyone was more or less the same age and sat at one long table decorated with golden plates and goblets. But, instead of an enchanted ceiling designed to look like they were outdoors, there was a moving mural of dragons battling wizards and witches. Every few minutes Hermione would look up and see a different one. At one point she could have sworn the wizard was Charlie.

"Are those photographs?" she asked as art-Charlie dodged a fire ball.

"Sort of," said the real Charlie, looking upwards. "It was designed by one of our former employees. All of these scenes are from her memories. I think I look a lot more heroic up there than I actually did that day." He laughed. "That was one of my first missions. Needless to say, it didn't go well."

Halfway through their meal Annaleigh got up and walked out towards the common room. Phillip kept his eyes on her. Once she was gone he looked to Sophie, who nodded. He got up and followed her out. Now it was Sophie's turn to watch him.

"Are you okay with all of this, Sophie?" Hermione asked, leaning in and whispering into her ear.

"Of course I am," said Sophie unconvincingly. "Eet ees normal for 'im to be concerned for 'is ex-wife. At one time she was very eemportant to 'im."

"I think she was referring to him being alone in a room with a girl he shagged only a month and a half ago," said Draco, leaning in too.

Sophie rolled her eyes. "Anna 'as nozing on me. I am not worried."

She had that right. While Annaleigh was pretty she was nothing compared to Sophie. Besides, Phillip seemed completely smitten. He would never do anything to hurt her. But Hermione didn't like the way Daniel was eyeing Sophie from across the table. Apparently, he was still eager for his piece. Sophie didn't seem to notice. She was too concerned over Phillip to pay any mind to the other people in the room.

After dinner everyone left the table and headed for the common room. When they got there Annaleigh was sitting in a chair by herself. Sophie went straight up to her and asked where Phillip was, like there was no bad air between them. Without looking up, Annaleigh told her he went back to their room. Sophie left immediately.

Hermione and Draco were both exhausted, but they wanted to give Sophie and Phillip some time alone, so they stayed in the common room for a while longer. Neither of them were being especially affectionate, considering where they were, but after Hermione found a book on one of their shelves and started reading it, she unconsciously leaned against Draco, who put his arm around her. It wasn't until Charlie hightailed it out of there that they realized they had done something wrong. At this point it all just felt natural.

"So, your friends … how serious are they?" asked Daniel, sitting down beside them.

Hermione briefly looked up from her book before deciding Draco could handle this.

"Serious enough that you shouldn't try to do whatever it is you're thinking about," he answered.

"Well. It can't be _that_ serious, can it? Last time I saw them they weren't even on each other's radar."

"That was the night they got on each other's radar, actually," said Hermione, turning her page.

Daniel raised his eyebrows high. "Really? I knew I should have stayed there and shagged her. If it wasn't for Anna."

Annaleigh, who was still slumped in a chair nearby, rolled her eyes. "Oh please. You know I never would've turned you in. I still don't know why you listened to me."

"I wasn't taking that risk. I love this job. Besides, that night didn't end up being all bad, did it?" He smirked over at Annaleigh, who turned a bright crimson. Hermione and Draco looked at each other and chuckled. It appeared that a third couple had also hooked up for the first time that night. But, unlike the others, it seemed like Daniel and Annaleigh were only a onetime thing.

"Please don't remind me," said Annaleigh, sinking even deeper into her chair. After a minute she sat back up a little and looked over at Draco and Hermione. "Could I ask you guys something?"

"Shoot," said Draco, stroking his hand through Hermione's hair.

"When …" she sighed. "When Chastity saw Phillip and Sophie were together, how did she react?"

Draco shrugged. "I dunno."

Hermione rolled her eyes. Never let a man do a woman's job. "She was mad at first and accused him of cheating."

"Baited by Zandicus, if I remember correctly," added Draco.

Hermione nodded. "But after all of the fighting happened she seemed really upset. She even started crying when she saw the two of them kissing."

"That's what I thought," Annaleigh said, staring blankly at the fire.

"So … about my chances with Sophie."

"_Oh my Merlin_! Do you never SHUT UP?" Annaleigh jumped out of her chair and stormed out of the room, making sure to smack Daniel on the head when she passed him.

He smugly smiled after her. When he turned back around Hermione was staring peculiarly at him.

"Uh … Daniel. Are you trying to make Anna jealous?"

His face stiffened. "What? Of course not! That is absolutely ridiculous!"

Draco raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "Are you sure? Because it seems to me like you have a thing for the hot ginger."

"I do not!"

"Oh my Merlin! You totally do!" laughed Hermione, throwing both hands over her mouth. When her giggles subsided, she asked, "Why don't you just tell her?"

Daniel looked skeptically around the room before leaning in and speaking under his breath. "Look, ever since the night we shagged Anna's been all weird. I wanted to talk about it but all she cared about was making sure Charlie never found out. The guy doesn't give two hoots about her. Don't know why she cares so much."

Hermione shut her book, knowing very well she was never going to get any reading done. There were too many dramatic people around. "Look, Daniel, could I be blunt with you?" He shrugged. That was as good as a yes in her eyes. "Anna likes Charlie because he's a nice guy. She's really upset right now and he's been with her every step of the way. You, on the other hand, are too busy trying to get under her skin that you're completely ignoring what she really needs."

"Which is?"

"Which is _not_ some guy she recently shagged saying he wants to get into the pants of another witch, especially one she is clearly jealous of. Sophie makes Anna insecure. If you want to make sure she doesn't like you then, by all means, continue what you're doing. Otherwise, stop being a prick and go comfort her!"

Draco threw his head back and laughed. "And, on that note, I think it's time for us to head to bed, Mione." He stood up from the couch, pulling her with him.

On their way out, Hermione turned to a dumbfounded Daniel and said, "Think about what I said, will you?" He didn't say anything.

Back in their room, Sophie and Phillip were already fast asleep. Their beds were pushed together and Sophie had her head on Phillip's chest. They had done the same thing to Hermione's and Draco's beds.

After changing, the two of them climbed into their new double bed and fell asleep instantly. At least the current room arrangements kept them from staying up all night shagging for a couple of days. It would be nice to catch up on their sleep for once.

The next morning they were all woken up by someone banging on their door. Draco was the one to slump out of bed and answer it. An older man with a round and cheery face was on the other side with Charlie just behind him.

"Good morning. I'm Mr. Haugus, head of this establishment," he said, holding out his hand.

Draco shook it. "Draco Malfoy. Pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Malfoy. I have heard many great things about you from Garrick over the last couple of months." It took Draco a moment to realize he was talking about Mr. Ollivander. Sometimes he forgot the wizard had a first name. "I apologize for waking you so early, but our facility is rather large and I thought you would want to get an early start. Charlie here has agreed to take you around and help you choose your dragons."

"Wonderful," said Draco, staring coldly at the other Weasley. He knew what he was up to. He was babysitting, knowing very well Hermione and Draco wouldn't do anything with him around. The damn Weasley's and their family loyalty.

"Breakfast is in ten minutes. We will see you all there."

After they walked away, Draco shut the door and climbed back into bed, wrapping his arms around Hermione.

"Did he say Charlie's going to be the one taking us around?" she asked, burrowing her head into his chest.

"Yes," sighed Draco.

"Ron saw the article. Charlie told me yesterday."

"And are you okay with that?" he asked, looking down at her.

Hermione shrugged. "Guess I have to be." She took one last moment to breathe him in before saying, "We should get ready."

All four of them climbed out of bed at the same time.

"Ten meenutes to get ready. Zat ees just reediculous. Who does 'e zink we are? Ugly people?"

Despite all of that, Sophie was dressed and looking gorgeous in five minutes flat. She even had some spare time to do Hermione's hair in an elaborate twist. Her idea, not Hermione's.

Only a handful of people were at breakfast, since most of them didn't start their day for another couple of hours. After they ate, Charlie took them to a room that looked like a small library. He pulled out several books with photos and descriptions of all of their current dragons.

"So what deed you end up naming zat dragon een ze desert?" asked Sophie, flipping through the pages.

"Oh," said Charlie, brightening immediately. "I almost forgot about that. We ended up calling it an Egyptian Firestorm. I fought it, since it wasn't technically in Egypt, but most dragon names are approximate region specific, and everyone else seemed to like it."

"Egyptian Inferno was better," said a bitter Draco. He had _almost_ won this.

"Well, I zink we should defeenitely get a 'eartstring from zat dragon. Eet 'as senteemental value."

"You weren't even there, Soph," said Draco, sitting down beside her.

"I know, but eet attacked you and 'Ermione when I was mad at you. Karma!" She and Phillip shared another high-five. "Ooh! Karma Chameleon! Zat ees what you should 'ave called eet! Eet blended een wiz ze sand, right? _Karma karma karma karma, karma chameleon.  
>You come and go, you come and go<em> …"

Hermione was the only one who didn't stare at her blankly. The witches exchanged a look and laughed.

"So what was zat dragon 'Arry Potter fought een ze Triweezard Tournament? We should get one of zose too."

"Ooh, a Hungarian Horntail. Good one, Sophie," said Hermione, sitting in the chair on the other side of her. "Do you still have the same one, Charlie?"

"We do, actually," he said, flipping through the pages of one of the other books until he found it.

Phillip looked at it and cringed. "Vicious."

In the end they chose five dragons, which was all Charlie said they had time for that day. After heading back to their room and gathering their supplies, Charlie guided them through a series of hallways and fireplaces that worked like the Floo network, only without powder and they only took them to places located in the facility.

Eventually they came to the lodging place of the Egyptian Firestorm. It was being held in a large space designed to look like a desert with an exact replica of the oasis it had been guarding. The only thing separating them from it was a thin piece of magical glass.

Charlie opened a small door in the glass and waited for them to do whatever it was they needed.

"Does anyone else want to try it this time?" asked Hermione, holding up one of the phials.

Sophie gladly took it. She mimicked what Hermione had done in the mountains to get the dragon to drink it. Once that was done, Phillip held out the book for her and she cast the extraction spell. Before long the heartstring emerged, only this one was golden. When they had it safely sealed in one of their jars Sophie smiled with a real sense of accomplishment.

Charlie hadn't been wrong about five dragons taking them the entire day. It took so long to travel between each ones location that, by the time they got back, it was nearly dinnertime.

Tonight Mr. Haugus joined them all for dinner. After spending all day with the dragons, Hermione had a million questions for him. "How many dragons do you house here?"

"Oh, I suppose we normally have somewhere between one and two hundred."

"What do you do with all of them?"

"Research mainly. We like to study their habits, learn about their specific skills. We have a devoted team here who spend hours upon hours observing them. We want to know as much about each dragon as possible."

"How long do you normally keep them for?"

"Normally just a year or two, but many of them hatched here and are a bit domesticated. We try to introduce them into the wild, but many find their way back here. Like that Horntail you visited today. He's been released at least a dozen times, but he keeps coming back."

"Hermione, let the man eat, why don't you?" joked Draco, grabbing her hand under the table.

"I'm sorry," she said, squeezing his hand. "I just never realized how little I know about dragons. It's all so fascinating."

"I'm glad we made a fan," laughed Mr. Haugus.

Across the table, Hermione noticed Daniel trying to talk decently with Annaleigh. Unfortunately, she wasn't having it and kept ignoring him to talk to Charlie. He sighed before looking over at Sophie, who was currently leaning against Phillip's shoulder. Hermione caught his eye and shot him a stern look. There was no way she was letting Sophie and Phillip become pawns in his pathetic game.

After dinner, Draco and Phillip got caught up in a very heated game of wizard chess. Halfway through, Hermione and Sophie got bored and went exploring through the halls. About thirty minutes into it they accidentally stumbled upon the large room with the fireplaces they had come across when they arrived. Charlie was there with his head in a fireplace while Annaleigh sat in an armchair behind him. She seemed to be his lookout, but was doing a horrible job at it.

"George, seriously, could you _please_ keep Ginny out of the room." A pause. "Because I don't like your tone, _Ginevra_. I'm not going to try and break up whatever is going on between them. Now I regret telling you they were here in the first place." A longer pause. "While your conspiracy theories are amusing, I don't think that's the case. He seems to legitimately like her." A short pause. Charlie laughed hysterically. "Yeah, Malfoy's aren't exactly known for that."

Sophie looked curiously at Hermione, who shrugged. She had no idea what Malfoy's weren't known for.

"Harry, have you heard from Ron at all?" A very quick pause. "So he's gone completely AWOL?" Another quick pause. Charlie sighed. "Well, I'm not surprised. We all knew this was going to crush him."

"You should tell them how coupley the two of them are. No use sugar coating it."

Charlie pulled his head out of the flames and glared back at Annaleigh. "They are _not_ coupley. She is going to get back together with my brother."

Annaleigh sighed. "You took off so quickly last night that you didn't get a chance to see how comfortable they looked. He was petting her, Charlie. _Petting _her."

Charlie turned red in the face. "You're not helping!" He stuck his head back in the fire. "Sorry about that. My lookout is being a nuisance." Another long pause. "I don't know, Ginny. I can't exactly ask her that. They're always together." Pause. "Yes, if I get her alone I'll ask." Short pause. "I _will_." Another short pause. "She's not going to want to Floo you, Ginny. She's not stupid. But maybe she'll talk to Harry."

There was a loud swoosh. Someone had come through one of the other fireplaces. Annaleigh jumped out of her chair and ran over to them. "Chastity! Where have you been?"

"Son of a -" Hermione threw her hand over Sophie's mouth before she could finish that sentence.

Charlie tore his head out of the fire, caught sight of the disheveled witch and stuck his head back in. "Sorry guys. Gotta go. Something important has just come up."

Once that was done Charlie ran over to where Annaleigh was hugging Chastity. "Everyone has been so worried about you! Your mum has gone absolutely berserk! Did that bastard hurt you?"

Chastity shook her head rapidly while Annaleigh moved tear-soaked hair out of her face. "No, no. Of course not. You know Zandicus is all bark and no bite. But I did it."

"Did what?" asked Annaleigh.

"I left him."

Sophie gasped. Hermione threw her hand back over her mouth. This time she kept it there.

"Y-you left him?"

Chastity nodded. "Uhuh. I've been trying to do it for months now but could never find the nerve. And then when I saw Phillip all happy with that _Sophie_ I just couldn't take it anymore. When is it my turn to be happy again, Anna?" she asked, a whole new set of tears seeping from her eyes. Annaleigh pulled her in and hugged her tighter. "Is he here?"

"Uhh … what?" asked Annaleigh, giving Charlie a worried look.

"I went back to Hogsmeade to find him but they had already left. Someone there told me they overheard him and his group saying they were heading to Romania. Since they were supposedly in Hogsmeade to find a dragon I thought he might come here. Is he?" She pulled out of their hug and looked hopefully at her cousin.

Annaleigh sucked in her lips and looked at Charlie again. He had no clue what to do. She sighed. "Look, Chassy, I don't think you should see him right now. You're clearly upset and he's here with Sophie -"

"I don't care! I have to see him! I have to talk to him!"

"About what? You're not trying to get him back, are you?" Chastity cast her eyes to the floor. Annaleigh jumped back three paces. "Oh Merlin, you are! Chassy, don't! I saw him earlier this summer and he was completely miserable. He's finally happy again. Isn't that what you wanted?"

"He'd be happier with me."

"Don't be selfish! _You_ left _him_, remember? You thought for sure there was something better out there."

"And I know now that there isn't. Could you please just take me to him?"

"No."

"Anna, I am your older cousin and you will do as I say!"

"By three months! I'm not taking you to him, Chassy! We're not kids anymore! You can't boss me around!"

"TAKE ME TO HIM RIGHT NOW, ANNA, OR I SWEAR I WILL -"

Sophie moved out of Hermione's grasp and pushed open the door, walking confidently into the center of the room. Hermione reluctantly followed her.

Chastity, Annaleigh, and Charlie all stared wide-eyed as they approached.

When they were standing in front of all of them, Sophie looked at Annaleigh and said, "Go ahead and let 'er see 'im, Anna. Eet ees not like eet weell make a deefference."

"Are - are you sure?"

"What are you asking _her_ for? You're _my_ cousin."

"She's his girlfriend, Chassy. I think she has a say in this."

"I'm his wife!"

"_Ex-_wife," corrected Sophie.

"Hermione, how long have you two been back there?" asked Charlie.

Hermione frowned down at the ground. "Long enough. Tell your family and Harry I'm not going to contact them yet. I want my last three weeks."

"Ex or not, we still share a bond you two will never have," spat Chastity.

"And then what happens after three weeks?" asked Charlie.

"I don't know yet," said Hermione honestly.

"You 'ave no idea what we share. Eet ees over between you two, Chasteety. But eef closure ees what you need zen I am going to geeve eet to you."

"Don't know?" repeated Charlie. "My brother deserves better than a 'don't know'."

"Phillipe ees een ze common room. I weell take you zere myself eef Anna weell not."

"No, I'll take her," said Annaleigh, moving so she was in between the two witches. She knew the claws were more than ready to come out. "Come on, Chastity. Let's get this over with."

"Anna, why are you being so negative?" asked Chastity, following her cousin out.

"Because I'm pretty sure you're about to make a fool of yourself."

"That was very brave of you," Hermione said to Sophie as soon as the other witches were gone.

"Yes … I - I am not worried. Phillipe loves me … right?" She looked to Hermione for reassurance.

"Of course he does. Phillip is crazy about you."

"Once upon a time, 'e was crazy about 'er too." Sophie stared blankly at the door Chastity and Annaleigh had just gone through. She blinked. "'Ermione, what 'ave I done? Phillipe cannot talk to 'er! What eef 'e takes 'er back?"

"He won't."

"You don't know zat! I 'ave to go een zere! I 'ave to see!"

Sophie made a break for the door. Hermione grabbed her arm and tried to hold her back. When that didn't work she hugged onto her shoulders, fighting with all her might against the desperate witch.

"Sophie, stop! You told her it was okay! You trust Phillip! He's not going to take her back!"

"I 'ave to know! I 'ave to know!"

"If I can offer you an alternative solution, will you take it?"

Sophie stopped struggling. "I am leestening."

"Alright then," said Hermione. She released Sophie and straightened herself out. "Follow me."

Hermione led her towards the door they had just come from. When they were almost through it, Charlie called after her, "Hermione, we need to talk about this!"

Swiveling back around on one foot, Hermione said, "No, Charlie, _we_ really don't. But fine. Come to our room in the morning and I'll make sure we get some time alone. Will that suffice?" Charlie nodded. "Good."

She turned back around and led Sophie through the halls to their room, making sure to avoid the common room at all costs. When they got there she pulled out a fluid-like, silvery cloak.

"I forgot I borrowed this from Harry at the beginning of the summer."

"What ees eet?" Sophie asked while stroking the material.

"It's an invisibility cloak. We're going to use it to spy on Phillip."

"An eenvisibility cloak? Don't you zink zis would 'ave come in 'andy earlier een ze summer? Like, oh, I don't know … when we were trying to sneak up on a dragon?"

"I told you, I forgot I had it," snapped Hermione. "Now, do you want to spy on Phillip or not?" Sophie looked at the cloak and let out a deep sigh before nodding. "Good." She threw the cloak over both of them and the two quietly walked off towards the common room.

XXX

Draco and Phillip had just finished their game of wizarding chess when the doors to the common room flew open. Draco barely had time to celebrate his victory when both he and Phillip looked over to see Chastity scanning the room with swollen eyes. They stopped on Phillip, who gaped over at her. He jumped out of his chair.

"Chastity, where have you been?"

Chastity walked over to him and said, "Where I have been isn't important. I just really need to talk to you." She looked all around the room. "_Alone_," she emphasized.

Phillip looked to Draco for help but he didn't know what to do here either, so he shrugged. Phillip grunted and turned back to Chastity. "I really don't think Sophie would be alright with that."

"I've already spoken to her and she says she's fine with it."

"That certainly doesn't sound like Sophie," stated Draco.

"No, it's true. She really did say it was alright. Tell him Anna." Chastity looked at her cousin sharply

Annaleigh groaned. "I'm afraid it's true. I wouldn't believe it myself if I hadn't been standing right there."

"Oh … Uhh … Alright then," said Phillip, not knowing what else to say.

Anna mouthed the word, "Sorry," to him before going around and clearing everyone out of the room. Draco laughed when Daniel immediately jumped up to help her. Everyone seemed more inclined to listen to him, especially the witches.

"Do you want me to leave too?" Draco asked Phillip.

"Yes," Chastity answered firmly.

Phillip frowned. "I guess you'd better."

Draco nodded. On his way out he was about to shut the door when he felt something brush past him, along with some noises that sounded like breathing. Following an inkling, Draco reached out and caught hold of some fabric. He laughed before pulling it up and slipping underneath it.

"You sneaky little witches!" he said under his breath.

"Get out of here, Draco! There's no room for a third!" Hermione tried to push him out the back, but Draco pushed back.

"No way! If you get to go in so do I!"

Hermione started to push him again, but Sophie stopped her. "Oh, let 'im come, 'Ermione. We'll just push up against a wall and 'old eet een front of us, or somezing."

"This is Potter's cloak, isn't it?" asked Draco. Hermione nodded. "You've had this the _whole_ summer?" She nodded again. "Did you ever think that maybe it would have come in handy, perhaps when we were sneaking up on dragons, or entering Acromantula nests, or I had to save you from those bloody vampires -"

"Zat's what I said!"

"I forgot I had it!" she said in a harsh whisper. "Now, if we're going in we should get to it before they realize the door is still open."

The three of them walked very close together as they slipped into the common room, one - or maybe all - of them accidentally brushing the door a little more open when they went through it. Phillip noticed and went over to shut it the rest of the way. They got out of his way just in time to avoid a collision. Once they were safely inside they leaned against the closest wall so no one would notice their ankles poking out the back of the cloak.

"So what did you want to talk about?" asked Phillip, returning to Chastity. He crossed his arms and casually leaned against the back of the couch.

"I -" Chastity stared down at the floor, as she was unable to look him in the eye. "Oh Phillip, I don't even know where to begin."

"Well … why don't you start by telling me where you've been these last couple of days? Your family's been worried sick."

"I didn't mean for them to be. When we left Hogsmeade that night we went to stay at the Leaky Cauldron in Diagon Alley. The next morning Zandicus went to some urgent meeting while I went to breakfast. The person sitting next to me was reading the _Daily Prophet_ and I asked to borrow it when I saw the photo on the front page. It was horrible. I contacted my parent's right after. I hadn't realized how awful I'd become. When I was in the middle of talking to her, Zandicus came back with his own copy of the article. He was freaking out about it. We ended up getting into this huge argument and I …" Chastity gulped back her tears. She finally looked up into Phillip's eyes and said, "I told him I was done. Leaving you for him was the biggest mistake I ever made. I know that now."

"I see …" said Phillip, feeling even more uncomfortable than he did before. "And how did he take that?"

"Not well," she said, half laughing, half crying. "He mentioned a few places I might consider sticking my wand and he left. I know I should have contacted my parent's right then and there but I really just wanted to be alone. I needed some time to think … And it was during that time that I realized that sad truth. The last time I was truly happy was when I was with you."

Phillip stared at her for a moment before moving his eyes uncomfortably to the ground. "Chastity, I -"

"Don't you remember what it was like when we first got married, Phillip?" she asked, reaching her hand out to grab his. He let her hold it, but he did not hold back. "Remember how much fun we had?"

"Yes, of course, but -"

"Remember the day we moved into our first flat together? We couldn't afford a honeymoon so when we arrived you had the entire place enchanted to look like Aruba. Well, I've been to Aruba now, Phillip, and you know what? It was nowhere near as great as those couple of days in our dirty flat drinking tropical drinks with little umbrellas."

Hermione kept hearing a weird sound. It took her a few minutes to realize it was Sophie grinding her teeth. Phillip looked around for whatever was making the noise, but became distracted once Chastity leaned over and kissed him.

Hermione and Draco each grabbed one of Sophie's arms immediately. She was already in the process of lunging forward and exposing them all. Draco threw his spare hand over her mouth to keep her quiet, since she was on the verge of screaming.

Phillip didn't push Chastity off of him, but he didn't kiss her back either. He was so stunned he didn't know what to do. When she pulled away she looked into his eyes for the answer she was desperately seeking.

"Chastity, I … love Sophie."

Hermione and Draco felt Sophie relax beneath their holds, but neither let go.

"Love?" repeated Chastity, moving away from him. "You - you love her?"

"Yes, I do. She makes me happy, Chastity. Happier than I ever thought I could be. Sure, she can be a bit dramatic, but that's part of what I love about her. No one can make me laugh like she does."

Chastity slowly began to shake her head and she continued to step backwards. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"You and I were great, Chastity, but I think part of the problem was we were never friends first. You were my girlfriend within two days of us meeting and my wife only a year after that. Sure, we had passion, but once that died we were left to find out we had nothing in common.

The witch looked down to the ground, her shoulders bobbing as she started to sob. Phillip reached out for her but she just pulled away.

"I'm sorry you're hurting, I really am, but you and I don't belong together. I belong with Sophie. It's just a shame it took me a divorce, the loss of my job, hitting rock bottom, and two plus years to figure that out."

"I see …"

"I believe everything happens for a reason, Chastity. You're going to find someone who is absolutely perfect for you. Someone a million times better than Zandicus Thinx. But, I'm afraid, it's not me. Sorry."

"D-don't be," she said, wiping some tears out of her eyes. I wanted honesty and Merlin did I get it." She tried to laugh, but only ended up crying harder. Phillip reached out and pulled her into a hug. This time she did not fight it. She clung to him, sobbing hard into his chest. "I'm so sorry I hurt you, Phillip. I know you never cheated on me, but telling myself that you did made it easier for me to justify my actions. I felt you drifting away from me, and Zandicus was there and he wanted me in the same way you used to. I just wanted that feeling back. I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

"Shh … It's fine," he whispered while stroking her hair. "Everything is fine."

"You shouldn't be comforting me after everything I've done to you. I don't deserve it."

Phillip chuckled lightly. "You're being a little hard on yourself, aren't you? As long as you don't end up marrying that prick I could care less what you did. I really am over it."

"I can see that," she said, pulling away from him. She looked at him with her puffy, red eyes and smiled. "Good luck with Sophie, Phillip. I really do want the best for you. Both of you."

"And I for you."

Chastity nodded. "I should go. My parents should see that I'm alright. Tell Anna I headed home, will you?" She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. "If I never see you again, have a good life, Phillip. You deserve it."

Chastity continued to wipe her tears while she ran out of the room. Once she was gone Phillip let out a loud sigh and fell over the back of the couch. He had only been laying there a couple of seconds when he heard the sound of muffled sobs. At first he thought Chastity had come back, but then there was a small yip. He recognized it immediately.

"Sophie?" he asked, standing up and following the sobs. He eventually located them near one of the doors, coming from midair. He reached out and felt a piece of soft fabric. He pulled it, revealing a weeping Sophie being held in place by both Draco and Hermione. Draco had his hand over her mouth in an attempt to silence her. It clearly wasn't working.

"What in the -"

"Hey, Phil! Fancy meeting you here! Isn't it fancy meeting him here, Hermione?"

"Oh! Umm … yes. Very fancy indeed."

"Is this an invisibility cloak?" asked Phillip, holding up the piece of fabric. Hermione took it from him and nodded. "Don't you think that would have come in handy -"

"When sneaking up on a dragon! _Yes_, I get it already! I forgot I had it, alright?"

"Phillipe!" Sophie leaped into Phillip's arms. The moment he was holding her he completely forgot that he was supposed to be mad they were spying on him. "I 'eard everyzing you said and you were right! You belong wiz me and I belong wiz you! But I am not dramatic!"

Phillip laughed and squeezed her tighter. "Whatever you say, Soph."

He leaned in towards her but before their lips could meet Sophie put up a hand to stop him. She took out her wand and cast a spell to remove all foreign saliva from his mouth, aka Chastity's saliva. Who knew there was such a spell?

The two started kissing, small at first, but then becoming progressively larger and less appropriate to be seen in the presence of others. Hermione pushed against Draco and used his arm to shield her eyes. She cleared her throat.

"Soph, perhaps we should move this elsewhere," said Phillip through heated breaths.

"Yes, I agree. We should defeenitely 'ead back to ze bedroom."

The two of them headed out the door, limbs and lips still tangled in each other the entire way. When they were gone Hermione and Draco stared blankly into the empty common room.

"Draco … did we just get kicked out of our room?"

"You know, Mione, I think we did."

"Huh … so … now what are we supposed to do?"

Draco put his arm around her and squeezed her close. "Tonight … we give them their night. But tomorrow … we get ours," he said, grinning mischievously.

Hermione grinned back. "Tomorrow sounds like a good night."

The two leaned in and kissed each other, both still blindly unaware of how wrong she was. Tomorrow was not going to be a good night at all. Tomorrow would be their worst night yet.

35


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: *Sigh***

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The next morning Hermione decided to stop pretending to sleep around six a.m. Ever since Draco had mumbled he loved her that one night she couldn't stop thinking about it. All night long her ears were perked up, just in case he said it again. He hadn't.

Hermione sat up on the couch they had slept on and looked down at his serene face. She reached out and brushed some stray hairs from his eyes, smiling as his hand instinctually came up and entwined with hers. He really was incredible.

"Argh!" groaned Hermione, moving off of the couch and as far away from him as she could get. She hated that she liked him so much. The only reason Draco was able to successfully sell her the idea of them having a fling was by saying he was the better choice if she wanted no attachments, but she was pretty sure if she had chosen Phillip she would not be feeling this way. They didn't share the same connection she shared with Draco. They didn't have that same fire.

Last night Phillip had been so sure when he told Chastity Sophie was the girl for him. She wanted that sureness, but she didn't have it. If she was sure about Ron she never would have wanted a break in the first place, and if she was sure about Draco she wouldn't be thinking about Ron so much. It felt like so long since she had seen Ron it was hard to say how she felt. She was pretty sure she loved him more, but what if she was wrong?

Taking a seat on a chair just across from the couch, Hermione looked back at Draco and sighed. How had he managed to get under her skin? Better yet, _when_ had he managed it? She liked to tell herself it wasn't until their game of twenty questions, but deep down she knew it was long before then. It was that first day. When she first noticed the changes in him. Right then she knew she wanted to know more about this new Draco Malfoy. And then he'd looked at her and she'd felt flushed. He gave her one of those cocky winks of his and she'd liked it.

Oh, Merlin! Hermione had just realized something. She _wanted_ this to happen. From that first day she hadn't wanted Phillip, she wanted Draco. These feelings were her fault. She was supposed to be smart. She should have known better than to take a bite of the forbidden fruit, expecting to come out unscathed. There were always consequences, and she was suffering them now. Hard.

She needed air. Getting up from her chair, Hermione went through one of the random doors and walked around until she found her way outside. She entered a courtyard and took a seat on one of the benches, letting the cool air hit her face as she tried not to think about anything, especially how today was their three week mark. Twenty-one days from now she and Draco would be returning to Mr. Ollivander's shop and saying farewell. She wasn't going to kid herself and pretend they would still be friends. Ron knew about them, and he hated Draco more than anyone else alive. He would see this as the ultimate betrayal, and he would want Draco out of their lives. Forever.

No! She couldn't do that. He needed her. And she needed him.

It wasn't fair that no matter which one she chose she was going to lose the other. But maybe Draco didn't even want to be with her. That would certainly make things easier. He said he had nothing to lose by them going public with their relationship, but that didn't mean his family would ever approve of her. In fact, she was positive they wouldn't. Draco was definitely the more complicated choice, but maybe he was worth it …

Just when she was about to go back inside, Hermione looked up and saw someone swooping in on a broom. She knew right away that it was Charlie, because that was the sort of luck she was having lately. Oh well. She promised him she would speak to him this morning so she might as well get it over with.

"Hermione," he said, landing in front of her. "What are you doing out here?"

"Just needed some fresh air," she answered. "You?"

"The same," he said, taking a seat beside her. Glancing over at her, he added, "You look exhausted. Did you not sleep well?"

"I didn't really sleep much at all, actually." By the expression that formed on Charlie's face, she immediately knew that this had come out wrong. "No, Charlie, not like _that_. After Chastity left last night Sophie and Phillip got all caught up in their _love_ for each other, and Draco and I were left without a bedroom. We ended up just falling asleep in the common room, only, I didn't sleep much. I have a lot on my mind, you know?"

"I can imagine," he said coolly. "Look, Hermione, I don't really want to ask you about your love life, but -"

"Your family is demanding you interrogate me. I understand, Charlie. I _have_ met them."

They both chuckled halfheartedly.

Hermione sighed before asking, "So Ron's really gone AWOL?"

"Yes," he nodded. "Ginny says after he saw the article he showed up at hers and Harry's flat, demanding they tell him if they knew anything. He admitted to seeing the first one with the vampires, where Malfoy had his arm around you, but tried to tell himself it was nothing. He could tell by your letters that the two of you weren't exactly on bad terms anymore. That's when Ginny told him about the weird conversation the two of you had after the first article came out. She was pretty sure then that you were hiding something, and then when that kissing photo came out it all made sense. You were worried about what Ron would think because it was true, not because it was fake."

"To be fair, that photo of us kissing isn't exactly real. They made us all animated."

"But the bottom half is real, isn't it? Only your eyes and noses look like a cartoon, the rest looks like you, and your … jaw area seemed pretty into it," he said, motioning to his mouth.

"Ron and I are on a break, Charlie. I haven't done anything wrong. The only reason any of you care is because he's a Malfoy. If it were any other guy -"

"We would still care. No matter who it is Ron is going to be hurt. He hasn't followed through with your break, Hermione."

She sighed. "Oh."

"But you are right. Who he is has a lot to do with my family's reaction. Maybe he has changed, I don't know, but that doesn't erase all he's done in the past. His father repeatedly tried to get mine fired, he openly mocks our family, he made Ron, Harry _and_ you miserable throughout school -"

"I don't remember ever being miserable during -"

"He tried to get Hagrid sacked, and get that hippogriff killed, he broke Harry's nose and left him -"

"I get it, Charlie!" she snapped. The wizard immediately shut his mouth. "I admit he's done some bad things over the years, but so what? He's been doing a lot of good to make up for it."

"Like what?" he asked.

"Well, for starters, he makes countless donations to various organizations and charities, mainly ones that benefit people affected by the war. And he works at the Ministry voluntarily. Ask Kingsley about him. He knows."

"Sounds more like he's working on improving the Malfoy name. It's all a game for them, Hermione."

"He has _also_ been helping out Mr. Ollivander for the last few years. And remember that anonymous donation Weasley's Wizard Wheezes received last year? That was him! How does _that_ benefit the Malfoy name?"

"Are you sure about that, Hermione?"

"Of course I am!"

"But did he volunteer that information, or did you ask him and he tell you it was him?"

Hermione thought about this. She had asked him point blank. Darn it! "I might have been the one to bring it up … but that doesn't mean anything. It was him, I know it was!"

"Maybe it was, I really don't know him well enough to say." Charlie stopped and stared blankly in front of him. He put his elbows on his knees and propped up his chin with twin fists. Letting out a deep sigh, Charlie reluctantly asked, "Do you love him?"

Hermione looked at him coldly. "Is that what Ginny wanted you to ask me?"

"Yes," he answered honestly. "She thinks you do by the way you were kissing him."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "She's very observant, considering it was only half a picture."

"So … do you then?"

Now it was Hermione's turn to sigh. "Oh, I don't know, Charlie. But, if I do, I'm not going to say it to you before I even say it to him."

"That sounds like a yes."

"It's not. You can go ahead and tell Ginny that I do love him, in a way, but I'm still not sure what kind of love that is yet. I need time."

"Three weeks' time?" he said, making an attempt to laugh.

Hermione smirked at him. "Exactly. Tell everyone to calm down. This is my summer away, remember?"

"I know. I think we're all still just a little surprised you went through with it. No one thought you would."

And that's when Hermione realized. "Neither did I."

The reality was that she had expected to kiss someone else, even anticipated it, but she never anticipated sleeping with someone else, let alone falling for them. Especially since Draco Malfoy was the person in question.

But the Weasley's didn't know it had gone that far. Maybe they assumed she had, she wasn't going to ask, but whether they believed it or not she was still going to have to tell Ron what happened. She needed to be honest and tell him she slept with Draco … only three weeks into the summer … after snogging another wizard. Wow. She really did sound like a scarlet woman. Mrs. Weasley would be so ashamed of her.

"I suppose that should satisfy them enough for now. Well, all but Ginny, anyway. You know I hate prying in your life like this."

Hermione smiled. "I know, but you're a Weasley, and Weasley's are fiercely loyal. That's part of what I like about all of you." After a short pause, she asked, "Your mother hasn't seen the article, has she?" Charlie avoided her eyes. Hermione sighed. "_Great_."

"Well, I better go shower before breakfast. See you there?"

"Of course. Are you taking us around again today?" He nodded. "You know it's alright if you don't want to do it, Charlie? I understand it's not exactly the most comfortable of situations for you."

"No, it's fine. No one knows this place like I do. If you want to finish this job efficiently, which I know you do, I'm really your best option."

Hermione chuckled. He knew her so well.

Charlie started to walk away. Before he got too far, Hermione called him back. When he turned around, she said, "Anna likes you."

Charlie froze. "Uhh … what? No, Hermione, we're just friends."

Hermione laughed at his naivety. "Sure. _You_ are, but she admitted to liking you the first night I met her. The only thing is that Daniel likes _her_, but she won't even give him the time of day as long as she thinks there's still a chance with you. So if you like her do something about it, and if not … well, let her down gently. I get the feeling that's what you'll be doing, despite the cute, little red-headed babies the two of you would make."

Charlie laughed awkwardly and ran a hand through his hair. "Uhh, yeah … I don't really see her like that. Thanks for telling me."

Hermione smiled. "No problem." At least now there could be one less dramatic situation floating around.

Once Charlie was gone Hermione stayed outside for a few more minutes before going back to the common room to wake up Draco. When she got there he was already sitting up and reading the same book she had grabbed their first night here.

When the door opened he looked over at her and smiled. She smiled back and said, "Morning sunshine."

"Where did you disappear to?" he asked, putting the book down.

Hermione walked over and let him pull her over the back of the couch and onto his lap. "Just outside for some air," she answered, leaning in and kissing him.

Hermione and Draco stayed like that for a good five minutes before the first people started walking through the common room to get to the dining hall. They decided that this was probably their cue to go and break up Sophie and Phillip's love fest.

Instead of just going into their room, they banged on the door repeatedly until Phillip finally answered. It was a good thing they knocked because it looked like he hadn't had his boxers on for very long. Both he and Sophie were very much awake.

"Good morning!" Sophie said brightly. "Where deed you two sleep last night?"

Hermione and Draco exchanged a look. "Where do you think?" he said, brushing past Phillip and going to his backpack to pull out some clean clothes. Hermione did the same.

"Touchy, touchy," said Phillip, jumping back on the bed and wrapping his arms around Sophie. "If you'd like, Sophie and I can clear out of here tonight, and you two can have some much needed privacy. Right, love?"

Sophie grinned. "Absolutely. We do not need a bedroom to 'ave a good time." She caught eyes with Hermione and winked. Both witches giggled.

"We were already expecting you to," smiled Draco. Both he and Hermione were already greatly anticipating their alone time. After the last couple of days they definitely needed it.

Getting up from the bed, Sophie casually asked Hermione, "So deed you talk to Charlie about what we 'eard yesterday?"

"What did you hear?" asked Draco, immediately whirling his head in her direction.

Hermione shot Sophie a look. The French beauty walked to the other side of the room with her head held low.

"It's nothing," answered Hermione. "We just overheard him talking to his family through the Floo about … well, about us."

"Was Ron there?"

Hermione shook her head. "No. Actually, he's gone missing."

"Oh. Are you worried?" asked Draco thoughtfully.

She shook her head again. "It's not like with Chastity where they thought she might be hurt. Ron's fully capable of taking care of himself. He's probably just off somewhere letting off some steam." And hopefully not shagging some strange witch. It drove her crazy that she was still so jealous, even though that's exactly what she had done. She could definitely understand his frustration.

"And is that where you were at this morning? Talking to Charlie?"

Hermione narrowed her eyes at him. "I already told you, I went outside. I did run into him out there but we only had a short conversation. Just so he'd have something to tell his family so they will get off our backs."

She could tell Draco really wanted to ask just what was said, but he didn't. At least he was trying to trust her. That was something.

"Look, Draco, I don't mean to sound secretive. It really just wasn't that important."

"Did I say you were being secretive?" he snapped.

"You didn't have to. I can tell what you're thinking."

"So you're a mind reader now? A master of Legilimency? Well, I'm pretty good at Occlumency and I'm afraid I'm going to have to kick you out."

"Don't you get snippy with me!"

"Oh Merlin, please don't tell me you two are going to fight again?" Phillip said, rolling his eyes. As soon as Sophie was finished putting on her jumper he grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room. "You guys spend way too much time being mad at each other. It must be exhausting."

As soon as they were gone, Hermione looked to Draco and said, "He's right. Why are we fighting now?"

"Because you've been acting weird ever since the morning we woke up to come here."

Oh snap! That was the morning after he told her he loved her in his sleep. Hermione hadn't realized she'd been acting any different. Oh Merlin, this must have looked horrible. He must think …

"Is this about Weasley? Are you starting to feel guilty about all of this?"

"No." That was definitely not a lie. She wasn't starting to feel guilty because she'd _always_ felt guilty. "I'm sorry, Draco, I hadn't realized I was acting any differently. I admit, I've been a little less touchy." He raised an eyebrow at her. "Okay, a _lot_ less touchy, but so what? Charlie already knows about us, sure, but there's no need to rub it in his face. Ron _is_ his brother, after all. I'm just trying to be considerate."

"It's not just that, Hermione. I expected that much. I can't explain it, but something just seems different. Did I do something?"

"No." Not intentionally.

"Then what is it?"

"It's nothing, Draco. Really, don't worry about it."

"We said no more lies, Hermione. Now tell me what it is."

Hermione groaned. She really didn't want to say this. It was too embarrassing. For which one of them, she didn't know, but she was pretty sure they would both feel awkward afterwards.

"Okay … fine. Have it your way."

He crossed his arms and waited for her to continue.

Hermione cleared her throat. "The night before we left I was having some trouble sleeping and … sometime in the middle of the night you … said something to me. In your sleep."

"In my sleep?" he repeated. She nodded. "What did I say? I didn't call you a Mudblood, did I? Because if I did you know I didn't mean it." Hermione shook her head. "Then what is it? It couldn't be _that_ bad."

"No … no, I wouldn't say it was bad. Just … unexpected." That was as good a word as any for it.

Draco waited. When she didn't say anything he asked, "Aren't you going to tell me?"

Hermione groaned again. She really hated this. "It's just that … well, you see …"

"Out with it, Hermione."

"You told me you loved me!" she blurted out suddenly.

Draco remained completely still, other than the gradually increasing size of his bulging eyes. His skin became even paler than usual as he stared right through Hermione. That was definitely not what he thought she was going to say.

"Oh," he said in a faded voice. "I … uhh … huh."

"You see? This is why I didn't want to say anything! Now it's awkward!"

"No … no it's not." It really was. "I'm sure I was just talking about … umm … you know, like a friend?" That didn't sound very convincing, even to himself. "I mean … I _do_ lo -" He cleared his throat. This word was really hard to say. "_Care_ about you," he corrected. "As a friend."

"So … you don't …"

"Merlin, no!"

"Oh." Hermione felt like she'd just been hit with five hexes at once.

"That's not bad, is it?" Hermione shook her head unconvincingly. "What I mean is, I'm not going to jump the gun like Sophie and Phillip and throw that word out after such a short period of time. I've never said it to any girl. Not sincerely, anyway."

Hermione chuckled halfheartedly. "Only when trying to get them in the sack?"

Draco smiled. "Exactly."

"You already had me there, Draco. No need to throw words around."

"Well, I guess I must have been dreaming about getting you there all over again."

Hermione attempted to smile before crouching down and going through her stuff again, making sure Draco didn't notice her wipe away a tear. This had gone even worse than she'd expected, and she hadn't been expecting much.

When Hermione stood back up with her clothes in hand, Draco came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "Promise me this isn't going to change anything. I'm sorry I said that. I didn't mean to freak you out."

Wow. He had really misconstrued this situation. But maybe it was better this way. Hermione turned around, wrapped her arms around his waist and kissed him. When she pulled away she smiled and said, "Of course not. I should have told you about it sooner."

"I understand why you didn't."

They kissed again, both of them fearing if they pulled away they might blurt out how they really feel. But neither of them did. It seems secrets were still being kept.

Once they were both dressed they went out to breakfast. Sophie and Phillip asked if they had made up, in which they both replied yes. Still, their friends were not blind to the weird air now floating between them.

Across the table, Hermione noticed Annaleigh was nearly in tears while trying to choke down a bowl of oatmeal. Charlie, who was normally seated next to her, was all the way on the other side of the table. Daniel was next to her, though, soothingly rubbing her back while she tried really hard to put on a brave face.

"Ze rumor ees zat Charlie told 'er 'e does not feel ze same way about 'er as she feels about 'im," Sophie whispered into Hermione's ear. "I wonder 'ow 'e finally feegured eet out." Hermione said nothing, making sure to take an extra-large bite of her toast. Sophie stared at her wide-eyed. "'Ermione, tell me you deed not!"

Gulping down her bite, Hermione said, "He needed to know, Sophie. She was never going to move on properly if she thought there was hope."

"Don't tell me you did it for that git, Daniel?" said Draco, nosing his way into their conversation.

"Daniel likes Anna?" asked Sophie, leaning in even closer. She was beyond curious.

"They shagged the same night you two did," laughed Draco.

"No way!" Sophie hooted. "Zat was a busy night!"

After breakfast, Charlie took them back to the room with all of the books to help them choose some more dragons. He pointed out a few of his favorites and they chose seven of them. They decided to keep one phial of the extraction potion per group, just in case. Mr. Ollivander hadn't told them if they would be going after anymore dragons, so it was better to be safe than sorry.

They visited four of them today. Charlie even wanted to try the extraction spell once. In all of his years of working there he had never seen such a thing performed before. Until now he had never even thought about how wizards and witches removed heartstrings from dragons.

"It's kind of fascinating how they're all a different color like that," he said, pulling a glowing, green heartstring from a Peruvian Vipertooth. "Do you think it has something to do with their breed or their personality?"

"I think their breed often has to do with their personality," laughed Hermione.

After they got all four heartstrings they headed back to the main part of the facility. There was still some time before dinner, so Charlie and a few others invited all of them to play a quick game of Quidditch in the courtyards. Hermione and Phillip respectfully declined, but Draco and Sophie jumped at the opportunity.

They ended up on the same team with Daniel, Annaleigh, Jen, Jay, and another wizard named Randolph. Draco played Seeker while Sophie, Anna and Daniel played Chasers. Jen and Jay were the Beaters, and Randolph was the Keeper.

Hermione and Phillip used their brooms to fly to the roof and watched them with their feet dangling over the edge. Both could not help but notice how Daniel kept trying to show Charlie up, and how Charlie kept letting him. As blatantly obvious as it was, Annaleigh didn't seem to notice - or chose not to - and was quite impressed.

It didn't take them long to figure out how Sophie was such a great Chaser. Sure, she was fast, but she was also a flirt and used her charm to distract the wizards on the other team while Jen or Jay would sneak up and whack a Bludger at them.

"That's my girl!" shouted Phillip proudly.

Needless to say, the game was over pretty quickly. Draco caught the Snitch about forty-five minutes into it and their team won, 280-60.

After the game, both Draco and Sophie flew over and joined Hermione and Phillip on the roof.

"Good game, darling," said Phillip, pulling Sophie onto his lap and proceeding to snog her.

Hermione and Draco looked at each other and rolled their eyes before leaning in and kissing themselves.

"With skills like that it's hard to believe you never once beat Harry to the Snitch," baited Hermione.

Draco raised an eyebrow and said, "Low blow, Mione. Any chance Potter is up for a rematch? My game's only improved with time."

"He probably would be," she said, laughing. "Should I mention it?"

"I don't see why not." He leaned in and kissed her again, this time giving a wink before grabbing her and apparating them to the ground. Kissing while apparating was still a really weird feeling, but she loved it. It was one of their very first memories and she would never be able to apparate again without thinking of him.

Sophie and Phillip joined them a second later, doing the exact same thing.

"Whoa, zat was kind of a rush," Sophie said, swaying from side to side. "I feel deezzy."

The bell chimed for dinner. They all headed into the dining hall, where everyone was still talking about the exciting Quidditch game. Anna was chatting happily with Daniel while Charlie smirked at them from across the table, already significantly closer than he had been that morning.

After dinner was finished, several people decided to play another game. Hermione noticed Charlie decline the offer and disappear towards the room with the fireplaces, undoubtedly to contact his family about their conversation earlier.

Phillip and Sophie didn't want to play either. Instead, they decided to go for a walk through the facility. There was still a lot of unexplored territory, since Sophie's and Hermione's walk had been cut short the night before.

Hermione assumed Draco went to play Quidditch with the others since he disappeared with them. She went into the common room, which was completely abandoned, and pulled out the book both she and Draco had both attempted to read, only to be continually interrupted. It was a work of fiction, which she wasn't normally used to, but she needed to relax her mind a bit. It was sort of like a wizard's version of sleeping beauty, so instead of defeating the dragon with a sword the prince had a wand. Hermione didn't think it seemed nearly as gallant.

When she was only a couple of pages in one of the doors flew open and Draco walked in with a wet head of hair and a bare chest. He smiled when he saw Hermione sitting there. She smiled back, stealing a glance at his glistening abs.

"I thought you went outside to play another game?"

"Nah," said Draco, sinking down on the couch beside her. "I just wanted to wash all the sweat off of me. I hate that grimy feeling after a game. If they didn't have these bloody community showers here I would have asked you to join me."

Draco grabbed Hermione by the waist and pulled her onto his lap. She closed her book and tossed it onto the nearest table in one fluid motion. Once he had her in his arms he stared deeply into her eyes while brushing his fingers against her cheek. He leaned in and gave her a soft kiss.

"I just ran into Sophie and Phillip. They said they'll stay away from the room if you want to get our night started," he said, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I should have known that's why you didn't play. There's only one thing men like more than Quidditch, and it definitely is not showers."

"Unless we have a beautiful bath time friend," he said laughing.

Draco used his hand to push Hermione's head against his, kissing her passionately. She ran her hands along his chest while his traveled down to her hips, rubbing the bare skin just above her jeans. She moaned lightly into his mouth as his hands traveled up her shirt.

Some shrill yells sounded in one of the other rooms. Hermione tried to stop and listen but Draco kept kissing her.

"Is that Sophie?" she asked through heated breaths.

"Don't know, don't care," he said, pulling her mouth back against his. "Let them have their drama. Tonight it's just you and me."

He was right. They had already done plenty for Sophie and Phillip this week. It was time for them to have some much needed alone time.

Hermione moved so she was straddling his lap, not even noticing as the yells came closer. Draco had his arms around her waist and was grinding her against him when one of the doors burst open.

Hermione looked up and caught sight of a pair of familiar blue eyes staring knives at her. "Ron!" she shouted, immediately jumping off of Draco and wiping her mouth clean. Though, it didn't do much good. The damage was already done.

Draco stood up with her and whipped around. Ron moved his death stare to him just as Charlie, Sophie and Phillip came barreling into the room.

Before they could stop him, Ron pointed his wand at Draco. A jet of green light shot out of it and hit Draco in the chest, sending him flying backwards.

"Draco!" squealed Hermione, kneeling down beside him, just as he began upchucking a giant slug. What were they, in their second year again?

Hermione looked up just in time to see Ron's back leaving the room. She looked back at the heaving Draco, torn for a split second before jumping up and running after Ron.

"Ron, wait!" she shouted, making sure to avoid everyone's judgmental eyes as she passed them. "Ron!" she shouted again after spotting him marching through the corridor and towards the room with the fireplaces. He didn't turn around. "_Ronald Bilius Weasley_, you stop right now and talk to me!"

"I don't want to _talk_ to you, Hermione!" he yelled back at her, attempting to slam the door in her face.

She caught it and followed him through, making sure to shut it and cast sealing charms all around. The last thing they needed right now was to be interrupted.

Ron made a break for one of the fireplaces, but Hermione jumped in front of him. "Oh, no you don't! What are you doing here?"

"What do you think? I came to visit my brother after I found out my _girlfriend_ was snogging, and who knows what else with Draco _fucking_ Malfoy!" he shouted furiously, making a break for another fireplace. "I recognized those bloody friends of yours from that photo in the _Prophet_ and knew you were here too." Hermione jumped in front of him again so he darted for another one. "Charlie tried to lie to me and tell me you weren't here. My own brother lied to me. For _you_. Your busy shagging bloody Malfoy and my family still feels some need to protect you. What about me, huh?" he asked, finally turning and looking at her.

"I never asked them to lie to you," she said honestly. "They were just trying to protect you."

"_Protect_ me?" His eyes nearly bulged out of skull. "Did you ever stop to think that if you were doing something I needed _protection_ from then it was probably something you shouldn't be doing?"

"Yes," she said in a hushed voice.

"Just tell me one thing, Hermione! Why him? Why Malfoy?" Ron pleaded. "He made our lives miserable for years! I'm not stupid, I know you could have anyone you wanted but, for some reason, you chose him! Why?"

"You don't understand, Ron! He's different now! He's a better person than he was before! He's my friend!"

"Is _that_ what you do with all your friends? Do you and Ginny do _that_ in secret?" Ron paused for a second, his face distorting. "Oh Merlin, horrible mental image! But not as horrible as what I just saw!"

"We're on a break, Ron! I haven't done anything wrong! You can't be acting like this!"

"I can act however the bloody hell I want! That's Malfoy, Hermione! _Malfoy_! Anyone else I can forgive! But this? How am I supposed to just forget about this?" Ron's eyes glossed over. Hermione instinctually reached out for him but he pulled away from her. "Don't!" he snapped.

"Ron … please …" she pleaded, her own eyes beginning to sting as her throat became raw. "I'm sorry …"

She reached out for him again. This time he let her wrap her arms around his waist. His arms clenched at his sides for a moment before reluctantly coming up and hugging her back.

He held her close, breathing her in for a moment before whispering into her ear, "Please just tell me you don't love him."

"I -" Hermione froze mid-line. No matter how hard she tried she couldn't bring herself to say the words.

Ron pulled away and stared down at her, horrified. His head shook slowly, as if he didn't believe what he had just heard - or not heard.

"Ron, no," she said, trying to grab him again. "It's not -"

"Say it. Say you don't love him."

Hermione tried again, but the words never came. Tears poured out of Ron's eyes as he headed to the nearest fireplace.

"Ron, wait!"

Ron threw all that remained of his Floo powder into the flames, walked in and shouted, "Diagon Alley!"

And he was gone.

Hermione sunk down in front of the fireplace and cradled her head in her knees, crying hysterically as she realized what she had just done. She had just lost Ron.

It took Sophie nearly an hour to break through Hermione's charms on the doors. When she finally got in Hermione was lying in the fetal position on the floor.

"'Ermione, what 'appened?" she said, running over to her friend and cradling her head in her lap.

"He's gone," Hermione cried. "He hates me, Sophie. What if he never talks to me again? He's my best friend and I've lost him. How could I let this happen?"

"You 'ave not lost 'im, 'Ermione. I am sure 'e weell get over eet. 'E just needs time. Now, get up. We need to get you to bed."

Sophie was surprisingly strong as she lifted Hermione off the floor and guided her through the back way to their room, purposely avoiding the common room. When they got there it was empty. Sophie laid Hermione down on her bed and sat down next to her, stroking her hair consolingly.

"Eet weell be alright, mon amie."

Only a couple of minutes later the door burst open and Draco came barging in. Sophie stood up from the bed and tried to push him out.

"Now ees not ze time, Draco."

"Well, that's too bloody bad because I need to talk to Hermione _now_! Get out, Sophie!"

"Do not talk to me een zat way! 'Ow dare you come barging een 'ere! Can you not see zat 'Ermione ees upset?"

"It's fine, Sophie," said Hermione, sitting up on the bed and wiping her eyes. "Draco and I really do need to talk. I'll be fine."

Sophie looked at her skeptically. "Well, alright. You behave!" she said, poking Draco in the chest before leaving the room and shutting the door behind her.

As soon as she was gone, Draco's yelling commenced. "What the hell was that?"

"What the hell was what, Draco? You need to be more specific."

"You …" he started, his eyes already flaring. "You just left me there! To go after him! You didn't even come and check to see if I was okay!"

"It was a slug charm, Draco, not an unforgiveable curse. I knew it would pass in about ten minutes. No harm done."

"No harm?" he repeated. "_No harm_? You just chose Weasley over me! How is that no harm?"

Hermione narrowed her eyes at him. "Why would I choose you?" she said coldly.

Draco was taken aback. He lost his breath, but still managed to choke out, "W-what? I thought -"

"You thought _what_, Draco? That I would choose you?" she huffed. "Why would I do that? You made it very clear this morning how you feel about me. You love me - wait, no! Not love - _care_ about me as a _friend_, right? So tell me something? Why would I choose someone who loves me as a _friend_ over someone who loves me unconditionally? Huh?" Hermione stood up on the bed, glowering down at a dismayed Draco. "Have you gone deaf or something? _Tell_ _me_ why I would ever do that?"

"I -" He fumbled with his words, unsure of what he was supposed to say. "- thought we were on the same page."

"Same page? _Same page_?"

Draco backed away, knowing immediately that he had said the wrong thing.

"Let me tell you something, Draco! Ron just left here in tears because he wanted me to tell him I didn't love you, and I couldn't say it! I couldn't say it because I do! I don't know why, I don't know how, but for some unknown reason I love you! And for one tiny moment the other night, I thought you felt the same way! But you … you took that away from me!"

Hermione was sobbing hysterically, with tears streaming all the way down her face and neck. But she didn't care. Draco needed to hear this. He needed to know the truth.

"Because of you I've lost everything! EVERYTHING!"

Draco didn't move. He just kept staring at her with the same wide eyes. Her whole body felt like it was on fire. She jumped off the bed and yanked his arm.

"I want you out of here!" she shouted, opening the door and tossing him through it.

"Hermione, wait!" he finally said, trying to fight back.

"STAY AWAY FROM ME!" They locked eyes for one final moment before she slammed the door in his face.

"HERMIONE!" he shouted, banging on the door, unable to open it since she had already placed several charms on it to keep him out. "Hermione, please! I don't …" Draco leaned his back against the door and slid down to the ground. "I don't know how to love you …"

Draco knew she couldn't hear him through her charms, but he didn't care. He needed to say it out loud, since even he didn't understand it. For years he had thought he was incapable of love, but there was definitely something here. He wanted to be with her more than anything. So why couldn't he just say it? Why couldn't he love her like she wanted him to? What had happened to make him this way?

Giving up on getting in, Draco laid his head down on the ground and, for the first time, just let himself cry without holding back. How he longed for the comfort of Hermione's arms right now.


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: A nice, simple chapter. After the last few dramatic ones I think we can all use a breather! ;-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

The next morning Hermione woke up with a throbbing headache. That's what happens when you go to bed after a fit of hysteria. While part of her regretted yelling at Draco the way she had, she didn't regret anything she'd said. He needed to hear it. His actions were not matching his words, and if he sincerely wanted her to pick him over Ron then he needed to let her know with more than just physical desire and heroic deeds. He needed to say it.

Hermione climbed out of bed with a groan, grabbed some clean clothes and toiletries and headed for the showers. Draco was nowhere to be seen. For some reason she had expected him to sleep outside the door. Guess she should have known better.

In the shower Hermione took an extra, long time soaking her swollen face. The hot water felt surprisingly good against her burning eyes. When she got back to the room she was surprised to find Sophie and Phillip sitting there, waiting for her.

"_What deed you do_?" asked Sophie accusingly.

"What do you mean?" she said, moving to put her stuff away in her backpack.

"Draco ees a wreck. 'E left on 'is broom een ze meeddle of ze night and 'as not returned yet. Charlie and a few of ze ozers went out looking for 'im."

"The only thing I did was tell him the truth. If he can't handle it that's his problem."

"So … what? You're just going to forget about him then?" asked Phillip.

"She cannot do zat!" snapped Sophie. "She loves 'im! You love 'im, 'Ermione!"

Hermione sighed. "I know," she said, taking a seat on the edge of her bed. "I told him that last night. Not in the most romantic of fashions, I admit, but I still said it."

"_You_ _what_?" screeched Sophie, jumping up from her seat, looking both pleased and baffled at the same time. "And what deed 'e say?"

"It doesn't matter what he said. All that matters is he didn't say it back. Game over."

"No! No game over!" Sophie yelled, pointing one stern finger at her. "Draco loves you! I know 'e does! Give 'im time and I am sure 'e weell say eet."

"I don't have _time_, Sophie! I have three weeks! That's it! We both went into this knowing it could never be any longer than that!"

"Why not?"

"Because it can't! You weren't in school with us; you don't know what he was like. Maybe I can see the changes in him because we've been forced to spend all this time together, but no one else in my life is going to get that opportunity and they will _never_ forgive him. As far as Ron and Harry are concerned, I've committed the ultimate betrayal."

"I'm pretty sure Ron would feel betrayed no matter who you had your break with," said Phillip logically.

"Maybe so. That's why I added the 'ultimate'. There's no one he hates more than Draco Malfoy."

"Then why deed you do eet?" asked Sophie.

Hermione sighed again. She was doing a lot of that lately. "I wanted no attachments, and I thought he was just that. This is a real mess I've gotten myself into. What am I supposed to do?"

Sophie frowned and moved to the other bed to put her arm around Hermione. "You steell 'ave zree weeks to feegure zat out. When ze time comes you weell know."

"But what if I don't?"

Someone knocked. They all looked over to see Charlie standing in the doorway.

"Deed you find 'im?" asked Sophie, jumping out of her seat.

Charlie shook his head. "No, but a few of the others are still out looking for him. I only came back because I figured we might as well get your other heartstrings while we can. No use delaying your mission for this."

"And what about Ron?" asked Hermione. "Has anyone heard from him?"

Charlie looked at her skeptically. "Yes, he's fine. He's with Harry. The two of them are going to go out of town for a few days. I think it will be good for him."

"Oh." Hermione stared reflectively at the ground. She knew what 'getting out of town' meant. It meant Ron was going to do what she had done; go through with their break. Even though this is what she'd wanted she couldn't help but feel a horrible jab to her heart.

What's worse, Hermione also had a sinking feeling Draco was doing that exact same thing. Not 'going through with their break', since they weren't even in a relationship to take a break from, but what the break implied. Maybe he had gone off last night to find another girl to shag. One with less baggage. There was another painful jab to her heart just beside the other one. She thought being in love with one person was awful, but being in love with two was so much worse. When had her life become so complicated?

Hermione, Sophie, Phillip, and Charlie went and had a quick breakfast before going to acquire heartstrings from their last three dragons. Since they already had all of them picked out, it was barely lunchtime when they finished.

On their way back to the room to drop off their supplies, Hermione, Sophie and Phillip noticed a familiar looking owl swooping through the corridors. It spotted them instantly and followed them into the bedroom.

"You are late," said Sophie, taking several letters out of the owl's mouth.

"It must have been waiting for us to collect all the heartstrings so it would only have to make one trip." Hermione went over to her backpack and took out all twelve jars of various colored heartstrings. She carefully put them all into a plain sack and placed it on the bed, knowing very well the owl wouldn't leave until it had their responses to their letters.

"You 'ave one from Ron, 'Ermione," Sophie said, reluctantly handing it over to her. "Chances are 'e wrote eet before ze article came out." Before Hermione could take it from her hand, she pulled it back and asked, "Are you sure you want eet?"

Hermione stared blankly at the letter for a moment before nodding and saying, "Yes. I want to see it."

Sophie sighed before giving it to her. Hermione looked down at his chicken scratch handwriting and immediately started crying.

"Umm … I'm going to read this outside," said Hermione, wiping her tears away. "Send the owl away whenever you're finished. I'm not going to write anything this week and Draco never does."

Clutching the letter to her heart, Hermione ran out of the room and didn't stop until she reached the courtyards. She sat on the same bench she had been on only a day earlier, trying to decipher her feelings for a completely different wizard. How had it ever come to this?

After several deep breaths, Hermione tore open the letter and slowly started to read:

_Dear Hermione,_

_ I was a little worried when I didn't hear from you last week, but Harry and Ginny keep reminding me you're busy and that I shouldn't expect so much. I guess they're right, but I would be lying if I didn't say your letters are the highlight of my week. The longer you're gone the more I realize how much I miss you, which is pretty bad considering I already couldn't stop thinking about you the moment after you left._

_ It's the little things I miss most. Like the way you scold me every time I put the peanut butter where the pickles belong, or the way you straighten my tie every morning before I leave. You're right, I do do it crooked and I can't seem to get it right without you here._

_ I'm sorry I'm rambling on but I really do miss you terribly. Only a little more than three weeks left until you're back here again and let me tell you, it cannot come soon enough. Harry is not a very good substitute when I want someone to cuddle with, or tell me when I'm being thick, mainly because he's as misguided without you as I am._

_ Anyways, come home soon, know that I'm always thinking about you, and give Malfoy a jinx or hex for me; your choice. Maybe give him a pig's nose or something. Or better yet, a snake's tongue! That would suit him._

_ Mind if I ask if the two of you are becoming friends? I've heard rumors that you are, but was sort of afraid to ask until now. I don't mean anything by it, it's fine if you are. I know you always try to see the good in people, even someone like him._

_ Please write back soon. I miss you._

_Love always,_

_Ron_

Tears poured down Hermione's cheeks, rogue droplets smearing the ink on Ron's letter. He knew something even before the article, and he was trying to be okay with it. For her. And she betrayed him. She didn't deserve him.

Hermione stayed in the courtyard, re-reading that letter over and over while the cool air stung her face. Where was Draco? Despite everything, he was the only one she wanted to see right now. He had the remarkable way of always making her feel better, even though he was the one who normally made her feel horrible in the first place. Even now, these tears were unintentionally because of him. If being with him didn't feel so wonderful, she never would have been in this situation in the first place. But she didn't blame him, she only blamed herself.

"Draco … please come back soon. I need you …"

XXX

Draco sat behind the large desk waiting for the witch who owned it to finally arrive. He had entered the office through apparition only minutes earlier and had come face to face with the recently approved cover art of a new book; _Purebloods and Muggle-Borns: A Love Worth Fighting For_. Of course, it was no surprise that the central photo on the cover was of him and Hermione, posing in the same cheesy way people do for engagement announcements. It looked pretty convincing, considering it was _completely_ fabricated.

The night before, Draco had left the dragon facility in a frenzied state. He was determined to find some way to prove his feelings to Hermione and this was what he came up with. He'd accidentally bumped into Charlie Weasley on his way out and seemed to have sent him into a sort of panic, probably because he was acting a bit hysterical. For over an hour he'd heard several people chasing him, but he didn't care. He needed to get away and he needed to think. _Alone_.

When Rita Skeeter came into her office she looked mildly surprised to see Draco Malfoy sitting in her chair with his feet perched casually on her desk. He was sipping on some mead from a bottle he had found hidden in her bookshelves.

"_That_ is a two-hundred year old bottle of mead! I hope you plan to pay for it."

"Two-hundred?" said Draco, furrowing his brow at the drink. "Only tastes like a one-hundred year old bottle to me. I think you got jipped." He downed the rest of his glass before pouring another.

"Aren't you supposed to be in Romania, Mr. Malfoy?" asked Rita, moving to drop some papers and her crocodile-skin handbag on her desk.

Draco chuckled lightly. "Why am I not surprised that you know that?"

Rita smiled slyly behind her jeweled spectacles. "What can I do for you?"

Removing his feet from the desk, Draco clasped his hands together in front of him and immediately became all business. "Well, _first_ I'm going to need you to stop following us. It's creepy and I don't want to have to look over my shoulder every time I'm gonna shag someone."

"So you admit you and Hermione Granger are 'shagging'?" she asked, pulling out her Quick-Quotes Quill.

Draco smirked. "I didn't say that." Something in his smile let her know to put her quill away. "Now, _second_, I'm going to need you to scratch whatever _that_ is," he said, pointing at the giant cover of him and Hermione.

"Well, that is absolutely out of the question! That project had already been green lighted."

"Maybe I'm wrong here, but I'm pretty sure you need our consent to use us as the faces of prejudice and adversity."

Rita headed over to her shelf and grabbed another glass from its hiding spot, pouring herself a glass of her mead. "As far as anyone important is concerned, you already have." She smirked, taking a sip of her drink.

Draco smiled right back at her. "I figured it was something like that. You seem to have a lot of tricks up your sleeve."

"Of course I do. That's how I've become such a successful journalist."

"Speaking of tricks," said Draco, standing up from her chair and walking over to the giant photo to investigate it further, "Hermione told me something about you. A dirty little secret would be more accurate, actually."

"If you've come here to blackmail me, Mr. Malfoy, I'm afraid you're wasting your -"

"Did I say I was trying to blackmail you?" he interrupted. "From what I've heard, Hermione already tried that. Worked for a year, right? Then you were right back to your old 'tricks'."

"So if you're not here to blackmail me then what do you want?" asked Rita, taking a seat at her desk and pulling some parchment from a drawer. She tried to pull her Quick-Quotes Quill out again, but one look from Draco stopped her. "I'm not going to stop the book."

"Yes you are."

"And what makes you think that?"

"Because," said Draco, moving so he was right beside her. He leaned in and whispered into her ear, "I am not going to blackmail you. I'm going to _destroy_ you."

Rita looked wide-eyed at Draco for a moment. She opened her mouth to say something but he put a finger on her lips.

"Before you say anything, let me clarify. Sure you're an unregistered animagus, but so what? Your main career isn't writing stupid articles anymore, it's all about your books. If worse comes to worse you can always register before I go public with this and it will probably do nothing to your career. If people don't know you're after them then how are they going to know to be looking for a beetle?"

"Exactly! That is why -"

"Ah, ah, ah! Let me finish," he said, pinching her lips shut. "Unfortunately, being an animagus isn't the _only_ illegal mark on your record. I am well aware that my father used to - for lack of a better word - _hire_ you to get his point across. I believe the first time was just after the First Wizarding War when he was being accused of being a Death Eater. That article backing up his claim of being under the Imperius Curse is the one to jumpstart your career, if I recall. And it all went uphill from there. I'm afraid your hands are as dirty as his, Ms. Skeeter."

Rita huffed. "What of it? If I go down you'll only be bringing him down with me."

Draco gave her a cocky grin. "Well, that's not really a problem anymore, is it? I've been working hard to improve the Malfoy name, as I'm sure you well know, but the only name I've really improved is my own. But, either way, my father has already been on trial for his many discrepancies, and cleared of all charges thanks to my mother lying to the Dark - You-Know-Who. But you … you've never been on trial before, have you?"

Rita started to say something but closed her mouth again immediately. For the first time in her life she didn't have a rebuttal, and Draco found that delightful.

"Witches like you don't do well in Azkaban, Ms. Skeeter."

Pulling a piece of parchment out of his pocket, Draco laid it out in front of her. "I have a letter here I plan to send to the Minister of Magic, stating all of the discrepancies of yours I know about. I'm sure the list could be much longer, but this is only the favors you've done for _my_ family, along with the whole 'animagus' thing. Go ahead and look it over. I have time."

Draco stepped away and began scanning Rita's books while she read over his letter, gasping repeatedly while holding both hands over her mouth. She hadn't expected him to know so much. Within a flash she had her wand out and burned the parchment so it was nothing but ash.

Draco turned back around and smiled. "That's alright. I have another," he said, pulling it out of his pocket. "Ruskle!"

_Pop!_

"You called, Young Master?"

"Here's how it's going to go, Ms. Skeeter. What I have in my hand is a master copy. I have put a charm on it so once it is burned I will be unable to write or speak its contents ever again. If you deny my request my house-elf, Ruskle, here will take this letter to Mr. Shacklebolt as soon as this conversation is over."

"What do you want?" she asked through clenched teeth.

Draco pulled another piece of parchment from his pocket and laid it out on her desk. "I want you to sign that. Once you do the letter I'm holding will burst into flames. But, I should warn you, if you ever violate that contract this letter will regenerate in my hands, wherever I may be, and I will make sure it gets to the right person shortly after."

"_No_ articles or books on Harry Potter? How did _he_ get into this?"

Draco shrugged. "No Malfoy's, no Hermione. That extends to the golden trio. You can write the good stuff. That's in there, paragraph seven, line five," he said, pointing at the contract.

"And no Ronald Weasley?" she said, glancing up at him through her jeweled spectacles. "You and I don't have to be enemies, Mr. Malfoy. I can help you, you know? Together we could destroy Mr. Weasley, making sure you have Ms. Granger all to yourself. That's what you want, isn't it?"

Draco looked back at her, a small shadow of doubt reflecting in his eyes. But he was quick to shake it away. He did want Hermione all to himself, but not like this. Handing Rita a quill from her desk, he looked firmly into her eyes and said, "Do we have a deal?"

Rita scowled at him before taking the quill and signing the contract. The moment she did the letter Draco was holding burst into flames.

"Perfect," he said smiling. "Ruskle, you can go."

"Yes, Young Master."

_Pop!_

"It's been a pleasure working with you, Ms. Skeeter," said Draco, taking the contract and stuffing it into his pocket. He walked over the giant cover art, looked at it longingly for a split second before holding up the burning letter and setting it aflame. Rita screamed out in horror.

Draco looked back at her and chuckled. "You might want to get someone to put that out," he said, dropping the burning letter to the floor. He walked back to the desk and looked at the half-drunken bottle. "I'm not paying for that mead, by the way. It was a bit unsettling, if you know what I mean, and I never pay for something I'm not completely satisfied with. Good day to you."

With one last cocky grin, Draco apparated out of there and back to the place where he had left his broom.

He mounted it and immediately headed back to Romania. He knew the area better now and was there in no time at all. When he arrived he circled around to the courtyards, since he figured he should probably return the same way he left, just in case they were still looking for him.

Before he even had a chance to land he noticed Hermione sitting on a bench, crying over a letter. Draco landed beside her, but she didn't notice. She was too engulfed in whatever she was reading. He looked over her shoulder and recognized Weasel's handwriting immediately. He sighed.

"Hermione," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Hermione whipped around and locked eyes with him. Her eyes flared for a quick second before softening. "Where have you been?" she asked.

"I had to take care of something," he said, moving around the bench and crouching down in front of her. "Are you alright?"

Hermione started to nod, but after a few unconvincing sobs she frowned and said, "No. I just got a letter that Ron sent to me before the article. I knew reading it would be a mistake, but I did it anyway."

"Give me that," he said, taking the letter from her and stuffing it in his pocket, just beside the signed contract. "You'll drive yourself crazy if you keep reading it. How long have you been out here?"

"I don't know," she said, snuffling. "Not long, I think. Is it still around lunchtime?"

Draco smiled up at her and wiped some tears from under her eyes. "A late lunch, but yes. Are you hungry? If you want I can go in and get you something."

Hermione shook her head. "No, I'm not hungry. Could you please just stay here with me?"

"Of course," said Draco, taking a seat on the bench beside her. He put his arm around her and she nuzzled into his shoulder, breathing him in as she did so.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you last night," she said, a new set of tears falling from her eyes. "None of this is your fault. You didn't do anything wrong."

"Neither did you."

Hermione chuckled, only to start sobbing again. "If only that were true."

While he wanted to remind her that she and Ron were on a break, he decided not to, in an attempt to avoid the obvious counterargument; it wasn't about her following through with their break, it was about _who_ she followed through with.

"We really need to talk, Hermione."

Hermione sighed. "I know, but not now, okay?" she said, snuggling in closer to him. "Not today. Today I just want to sit here and forget about yesterday. Is that alright?"

Draco nodded his head against hers before giving her a kiss on the forehead. "You're the boss," he said, smiling down at her.

Hermione smiled back. "I'm glad you're finally getting it."

Draco desperately wanted to lean down and kiss her sweet lips, but he knew this wasn't the time. Today he needed to focus on just being Hermione's friend, but tomorrow … tomorrow he would focus on being something more.

They stayed like that for over an hour before the doors burst open from the inside and Sophie and Phillip came marching out. Both of them smiled when they saw Hermione and Draco were together.

"Have you two made up then?" asked Phillip, taking a seat beside Draco while Sophie took one beside Hermione.

"Have _you_ _two_ never heard of boundaries?" asked Draco, scooting closer to Hermione - if at all possible.

"No," they both said in perfect sync. They leaned over the other couple and gave each other a high-five.

"Did you need something?" asked Hermione, trying to clean up her face a little for the newly arrived guests. She wasn't as comfortable with them seeing her looking so vulnerable as she was with Draco.

Sophie and Phillip exchanged a look. They both sighed. "We 'ave a problem," said Sophie, pulling a letter out of her pocket.

_Oh great_, thought Draco, taking the letter from her. Another problem was just what they needed.


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N: Sorry this chapter's so short, but it's definitely one for the hopeless romantic in all of us.**

**Some intense drama is coming very very soon … but not yet! ;-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

"How can he be separating us?" shouted Draco, while waving the letter around in fury.

Hermione reached out and grabbed it from him. She understood what was going on but wanted to hear the details. According to Mr. Ollivander, he wanted Hermione and Sophie to return to his shop for a week and assist with his wand making while Draco and Phillip continued collecting items off of a list he had included in the letter.

"How did this happen?" she asked, secretly wondering if Draco went off that morning and requested not to work with her again.

She was just about to ask this out loud when Sophie said, "Eet ees my fault. When we first separated I sent a letter to Mr. Olleevander requesting zat 'Ermione and I get to work togezer for a week. I deed not know zat we would get all zis time as a foursome again!"

"It's fine, Sophie," said Hermione, feeling a rush of relief. Thank Merlin she hadn't blamed Draco. That would not have ended well. She really needed to stop expecting the worst and just trust him.

"Well you'll just have to contact him and tell him never mind," said Draco, tightening his grip on Hermione.

"We already tried that," said Phillip. "We've been talking to him through the Floo for over an hour. He won't budge after all the switching we did before. This time he says the groups are set."

"Eet ees only one week. Eet weell not be so bad."

"Easy for you to say," said Draco, sighing.

Hermione sneered at the letter she was still holding before standing up and walking inside without saying a word.

Draco stared after her and frowned. Feeling two sets of eyes burning into him, he looked to his right and then to his left, not surprised at all to find both Sophie and Phillip staring intently at him.

"Draco, what are you going to do about zis?" asked Sophie, very seriously.

"What do you mean? You already said Ollivander won't let us switch."

"Not _zat_, you eediot!" she said, smacking him on the back of the head.

"You _do_ realize that Hermione is going to be near her home," said Phillip.

Draco blinked.

"Where she lives."

He blinked again.

"_With_ Ron."

Draco's eyes suddenly became very wide and still.

"She can go 'ome anytime she likes. Eef she wants to talk to 'im she weell."

"You … you don't think she'll stay there … do you?" Draco asked, still frozen in his look of shock.

"I am going to try and make 'er stay wiz me. Mr. Olleevander said 'e 'as already booked us a room at ze Leaky Cauldron."

"But, at least, if she goes home early on Ron won't be there," said Phillip.

"He won't?" asked Draco, finally relaxing his face a bit. "Where is he?"

"Charlie told 'Ermione zis morning zat Ron and 'Arry went 'out of town' for a few days. We all know what _zat_ means."

Draco was overcome with a surge of relief. "He's going to go through with it,' he said delightedly. "Stupid git."

"Now, Draco, eef 'e does go zrough wiz eet zen zat definitely puts you ahead of ze game."

"I don't know about that, Soph," said Phillip, raising an eyebrow. "What about the whole 'I love you' debacle?"

"Oooooh, right …" Sophie smacked the back of Draco's head again. "Eediot. Why deedn't you tell 'er you love 'er?"

"She told you about that?" he said horrified. "You don't understand, Sophie. I didn't mean to take it back. Heck, I didn't mean to say it at all."

Sophie's normally green eyes suddenly became very red and wide and angry. "_YOU DEED WHAT_?"

Phillip jumped off of the bench and out of the line of fire. Draco tried to back away too, but Sophie swung her arm out and grabbed him in a death grip. "You said she told you!" he said in a desperate attempt to defend himself.

Sophie shook her head slowly. "She said she told you she loved you and you deed not say eet back! She never said you _took_ eet back!"

Draco somersaulted out of her grip just as Sophie took out her wand and shot a hex at him. She cursed at him in French while chasing him around the courtyard, accidentally destroying everything her wand touched.

"Hey! I finally understand French!" laughed Phillip from the sidelines. He was not going to be any part of this.

"_Why_ would you 'take eet back' you stupeed, stupeed bastard?" she yelled, just missing him with her stinging hex.

"It wasn't like that, Sophie!" he shouted while dodging a hex meant to turn his skin green. "I didn't really take it back because I didn't really say it! I was asleep! I said I loved her in my sleep and she heard me! I didn't _actually_ say it!"

"Yes you deed, Draco! Eef you were asleep zen zat just proves you love 'er even more! Saying zings like zat when sleeping ees not common! _Wingardium Leviosa_!" Sophie caught Draco in her levitating charm and brought him over to her. "I do not know what you are so afraid of. Tell 'er 'ow you feel, Draco. Before eet ees too late."

Sophie released her spell and Draco fell in a heap on the ground. She sneered down at him before leaving the courtyard and going inside. Phillip walked over and held out a hand to Draco, which he graciously accepted.

"So the real point of this conversation was to tell you to do something with her tonight," he said, pulling Draco to his feet. "If you're not ready to say it then do something for her to let her know she's special. Get one up on that boyfriend of hers."

"How am I supposed to do that?"

Phillip shrugged. "How should I know? You're more of a charmer than I've ever been. But, whatever you do, make sure she forgets about him tonight. You want her missing you this week, not him. I'm sure you'll think of something."

After Phillip went inside, Draco plopped down on the same bench as before and got to thinking. What special thing could he do for Hermione in Romania?

XXX

A little while later Draco found Hermione in their room hunched over a map.

"What are you doing?"

She looked up suddenly and smiled. "I'm mapping out yours and Phillip's course for the week so that it will be the most time efficient. I have it so you'll be close enough to visit us at least two of the seven nights. If you work really fast we might even be able to get a third in."

Draco smiled back at her. "Aww, darling, does this mean you're going to miss me?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You already know that I am. No need to gloat over it."

"I like gloating," he said, leaning down and kissing her forehead. "Are you almost done here?"

"Just finishing, actually," she said, rolling up the map. "I put notes on there. It's pretty self-explanatory. If you have any trouble then … well, I'll think less of you. So get it right."

"Great," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her to her feet. "Come along then. We have somewhere to be."

"Uh … where?" she asked, stumbling as Draco used his wand to help her into her shoes.

"It's our last night together for a week, Hermione. Did you really think we were just going to sit around here and do nothing?"

"Well … yes, actually."

Draco grabbed his favorite fitted red jumper of Hermione's out of her backpack and tossed it at her. "We're flying so it might get chilly."

Hermione didn't question him again. Instead she just went with it. After a night like last nights she could really use some fun, and Draco was pretty good at distracting her from the problems at hand.

Once her jumper was on they went outside and mounted his broom. They would only be using one tonight. Hermione wrapped her arms tightly around his waist while they flew, not feeling the fear she normally did on these things. Even after two months she still hadn't gotten used to them, but when Draco was in the captain's seat she knew she was safe. He would never let anything happen to her.

"There's just one quick stop we have to make before we head to our destination!" Draco shouted over the wind.

They landed in the middle of some trees. The area was clearly bewitched for traveling witches and wizards. That could only mean one thing. Tourist destination.

Draco slipped his broom into some hidden lockers in the trees and took Hermione by the hand, leading her to their first destination. When she saw it she did everything in her power not to laugh, which actually seemed to be the reaction Draco was anticipating.

"Bran Castle. Really, Draco?"

Draco looked over at her and smiled. "What? I felt I needed to take you to at least one Muggle destination while we're here and this place seemed perfect. It's the possible inspiration for a famous Muggle book, which I'm sure you've read -"

"'I have -"

"It's a book about vampires which you and I have a history with -"

"We do -"

"I feel like that was perhaps one of the most exhilarating nights that really bonded us, you know?" said Draco pseudo-passionately.

Hermione smirked. "I do."

"Right then. Let's go be Muggle tourists. Never thought I'd say _that_ sentence in my life."

They both laughed before walking hand-in-hand to Dracula's inspired castle. Draco had even traded some of his galleons for lei with Daniel before they left. Once they had their tickets Hermione and Draco walked through the castle.

While Hermione was semi-interested in this place, she found it far more fun to join in Draco's mocking of the other tourists by pretending they actually knew something about architecture. They pretended to be students and threw out some fancy words they came up with on the spot. People ate it up.

The best part of the day, though, was when Draco transfigured Hermione's jumper into a cape and ran around scaring little kids, all the while calling himself 'Count Draco-la'. While Hermione should have been mortified, she was too amused to pretend to display the proper emotion. They got kicked out shortly after that, which was fine since they needed to go, anyway.

Draco and Hermione mounted their broom and headed to their next destination. They landed on the top of a cliff in the Rodna Mountains just before sunset. Hermione ran to the edge and took a good look at the valley below them.

"I'm having an intense case of déjà vu," she said, turning back to Draco and smiling. "Are you trying to relive our first kiss?"

"Something like that," he said, coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist.

They stayed like that, watching as the scarlet and gold of the sunset melted into the green and silver landscape below them. Before long they were one. A deep blue night that might as well have never been separate.

As soon as the sun was completely set, Draco turned around and, with one wave of his wand, turned on thousands of twinkling lights in the trees. Hermione gasped. It was like the stars had jumped right out of the sky.

In the center of it all was a large blanket lain out with a picnic basket and a bottle of wine.

"What is all this?" she asked, having a very hard time hiding the joy on her face. No one had ever done something so romantic for her before. It was amazing, to say the least.

"Just a little something I set up," he said nonchalantly. "Or … Ruskle set up. However you want to look at it. Either way it was my idea." Before Hermione could roll her eyes, Draco pulled her close and kissed her. When he pulled away he looked into her twinkling eyes, knowing immediately that he had done something right for once. "I don't know about you, but I'm starving. Shall we?"

Hermione took his hand and the two of them sat on the blanket. He opened the bottle of wine first, pouring them each a glass. The basket was full of cheeses, crackers, grapes, foie gras - which she wasn't really a fan of but she faked it well - and chocolate covered strawberries for dessert.

Hermione listened intently while Draco described each cheese in detail and paired it with the proper cracker. All were chosen to go with the red cabernet they were drinking. Draco was exceptionally cultured and Hermione loved that about him. The only type of cheese Ron liked was those individually wrapped slices he used to make grilled cheese sandwiches.

The entire night went incredibly smoothly. Hermione could not remember the last time the two of them just got to sit around and relax. Had there ever been such a time? The only previous romantic evening they had did not exactly end well. She was determined to avoid all confrontation tonight. Now that they had even less time to spend together she wanted to enjoy the little there was even more. She even played along as Draco tackily fed her a strawberry, laughing as he licked off some stray juice trickling down her chin.

Still chuckling, Hermione pulled Draco in for a heated kiss. Before long he was on top of her, tracing the seam of her jeans with nothing but the gentle tips of his fingers. It was cold so Draco left Hermione's jumper on, but that didn't stop him from running his hand inside of it while the other worked on undoing her bottoms.

While his cold hand caressed her breasts, Hermione roughly nibbled at his neck and collarbone. Once her bottoms were off he began working on his own. Pulling away from his neck, Hermione met Draco for a kiss, running her own hands underneath his shirt to rub his back, her nails digging into his smooth flesh as he entered her.

It had been several days since they had done anything and it wasn't long before Hermione felt herself going over the edge. Normally when she finished Draco wasn't far behind, but this time he seemed to just be getting started. He kissed her rough and hard while doing things that only made her dig her nails deeper.

When Hermione was about to scream out again Draco stopped moving. She opened her eyes and found him smirking down at her. His breath still heavy with heat, he leaned down and whispered, "You have to hold on a little longer, Mione. I want to earn my high-five."

Hermione started to laugh but was quickly silenced by Draco's lips. He started moving again, this time with even more vigor than before - if at all possible. She began scratching her nails deeply across his back to try and hold it in, but it was really, really hard.

She knew he was close when he began to bite deeply into her lip. And then, at the same moment, the two of them released, their toes curling as their holds on each other tensed, and then relaxed. Hermione an Draco opened their eyes and smiled at each other. They each lifted a hand and gave an enthusiastic high-five.

"Oh, that is exhilarating!" said Hermione, enjoying the tingling sensation now traveling through her hand.

Draco chuckled before rolling off of her. He pulled her with him so her head was now resting on his chest.

"It's been too many days since we've done that," said Draco, twirling her hair around his fingers. "Are we really supposed to go an entire week without shagging?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. Men and their one-track minds. "If you follow the schedule I made for you then there will only be a couple of days in between. I'm sure you can handle it."

"I don't know about that. You're addictive, Hermione. Give me a couple of minutes and I'll be more than ready to go again."

Hermione playfully slapped his chest. "Maybe we should wait until we're not in the middle of nowhere. Do you think Sophie and Phillip will give us the room since we didn't exactly get it last night?"

"They've already said yes. Should we head back then?"

"No. Not yet," said Hermione, sitting up and pulling her clothes back on. It was too cold to be half-naked. "You said earlier that we needed to talk and I think we should do it now."

"I thought you said not today," said Draco, following her lead and pulling his own clothes back on.

"That was before I realized we wouldn't get tomorrow. We can't go an entire week without … talking about things that were said."

"Oh," said Draco, all too aware of what she was referring to. "Alright then. Where should we start?"

"Probably the fact that I told you I loved you in the most _unromantic_ way ever."

"Straight to the point. That's why I like you, Hermione. Uhh … wait, no … that's why I lllooo - uhh, care -"

"Draco, stop," said Hermione, putting her hand over his mouth. "You don't have to say it just because you think it's what I want to hear."

Draco removed her hand. "Umm … I don't?"

Hermione shook her head. "No, of course not. It shouldn't be forced. When you love someone the words should just come out naturally. If you ever do say it to me, I don't want it to be out of obligation. I want it to be true."

"But you … really do feel that way about me?"

"Yes, I do."

"And Weasley?"

Hermione sighed. "I love him too."

Draco felt his heart ache as she said the words he wanted all to himself about another man. After all that had happened between them part of her still wanted Ron. That's what hurt the most.

Looking at her peculiarly, Draco asked, "Could you maybe just … say them one more? Without the hostility?"

Hermione chuckled before leaning in and kissing him. When she pulled away she stared deeply into his silver eyes, put one hand on his cheek and said, "I love you, Draco Malfoy."

Draco's heart was aflutter. This was it. His moment to tell her he loved her too. But when he opened his mouth to say it he chickened out and kissed her instead. Something was still holding him back. While he tried to tell himself it was because he didn't feel the same way about her, he knew that was a lie. He did love her, but the reality of what was waiting for them in three weeks kept him guarded. If he told her his true feelings it would make it that much harder for him to let her go at the end of all of this.

"So since you're not going to tell me you love me, the least you can do is tell me where you were this morning," said Hermione, winking.

Draco tried to chuckle, but failed miserably. He knew she was trying to be nonchalant, but there was no possible way to disguise the awkwardness of this situation.

"I was shagging another witch." More awkwardness. Draco winced. He knew this was no time for a joke. Hermione tried to smack his chest, but to keep her from saying something even more uncomfortable he grabbed her wrist, pulled her in and kissed her. "I went to see Rita Skeeter. Someone had to shut her up," he said when the kiss ended.

"And did you?" asked Hermione.

Draco nodded and proceeded to tell her the whole story. When he was finished Hermione fell to the floor laughing.

"She was _seriously_ writing a book about us? Sometimes that woman just doesn't think things through. How did she plan to get away with it?" she asked, rolling back to a sitting position.

Draco shrugged. "I didn't ask. I think she forged our signatures or something."

"She really is just the worst kind of person. I wish I could have seen her face when you made her sign that contract. You really had that much on her?"

Draco smirked. "Of course. Us Malfoy's always keep records of those sorts of transgressions, just in case we need a fallout guy."

"I'm curious to see that letter. It's a shame you can't write or speak it."

"Oh, that?" said Draco, waving it off. "Don't worry, you can read it. The contract didn't say anything about previously written lists. I kept one around, just in case. We both know Skeeter's going to try and get out of this somehow. You'd think a journalist would be smart enough to read the fine print."

Hermione smiled before leaning in and kissing him again. What Draco had done with Skeeter was incredibly sweet. He hadn't known about the book before going there. His intention was simply to do something nice for Hermione and make her happy, and this was _after_ she had screamed at him and locked him out of their room. Why was he doing all of this for her? She should be the one doing something for him.

The answer was really very simple. He loved her, even if he wasn't ready to admit it. _And_ maybe he didn't want her to go running back to Ron while she was so close to home. She'd be lying if she said she hadn't thought about it. It was hard not to. All summer she had been pushed away from him and now, all of sudden, she was prematurely taken away from Draco and thrown right back at Ron - and all this only days after they accidentally ran into each other. In _Romania_ of all places. Maybe fate was trying to tell her something.

But, even if it was, Hermione was going to stick to her original plan. She would not see Ron again for the remainder of the summer. The next three weeks were all about Draco.

"Thank you, Draco … for everything. I really needed tonight."

"I know," said Draco, climbing to his feet and pulling her with him. "We should head back now." He began rubbing his hands all along her body. "Straight to our bedroom?"

Hermione rolled her eyes before pushing him off of her. She moved to clean up their mess but Draco stopped her.

"Ruskle will take care of that. We have more important things to do."

He pulled her in and kissed her passionately before mounting their broom and patting the seat behind him. While Hermione's moral compass was telling her to stay and not make the house-elf do all the work, a stronger part of her put her on that broom. Hermione and Draco flew off into the night, eager to spend their last evening together for an entire week … _not_ sleeping.

If only things could always be as simple as they were that night. But love was never simple and, pretty soon, Hermione and Draco were going to be put to the ultimate test. Hopefully they were ready for it.

17


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: I've decided that since I'm getting so close to the end with this story I'm not going to split up anymore chapters. I apologize for the length.**

**Hope you enjoy!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Hermione waited in anticipation for Draco to arrive. It had been two days since she had seen him and she couldn't wait. Sophie was just as eager to see Phillip. The two of them could hardly concentrate on their work.

For two days they had been learning the art of wand making. Shaping the wood, setting the cores, adding magical properties. Well, the latter was only ever done by Mr. Ollivander, but they still watched.

Hermione learned right away that she had a knack for wood shaping. Each wand was unique and her perfectionism definitely helped in making each one special and flawless. Sophie was kicked off of this task fairly quickly. She simply didn't have the patience.

"Heeheehee!"

Hermione shot Sophie a sharp look as she tucked something back in her pocket, just missing Mr. Ollivander's eyes. In an attempt to stay connected, Sophie and Phillip had picked up Muggle cell phones before separating and were 'texting' constantly, whatever that meant. If Mr. Ollivander found out he would blow a fuse.

Noticing Hermione's eyes wandering to the clock for the hundredth time that day, Mr. Ollivander asked, "Waiting for something, Ms. Granger?"

Hermione whipped around and tried her best not to look guilty, which ended up making it even worse. "No! Of course not!" she said, her voice squeaking.

"Well, you might want to concentrate a little harder on your work there," he said, motioning to the wood she held in her hand. "That's the branch from that tree in the desert. I believe you and Mr. Malfoy took on a dragon for it."

Hermione looked down at the wood in her hands and smiled. It really was the branch from the tree shaped like a woman. Merlin, she wanted to see Draco.

To take her mind off of him, Hermione spent the rest of their workday shaping that piece of wood. She ended up sanding it smooth at the tip, but about two-thirds of the way up she engraved an elaborate vine pattern that met at the top. At the head of the wand she carved a very intricate dragon claw gripping what appeared to be a heart. It was discrete enough that someone might just think it was a random design, but the symbolism was obvious to her.

"Well done, Ms. Granger! This might be your best work yet!" Mr. Ollivander took the finished product out of Hermione's hands and inspected it. "Completely flawless." After putting the wand with the other empty shells that still needed cores and magical properties, Mr. Ollivander turned to the girls and said, "I believe we are done for the day. The two of you are free to leave."

Sophie let out a yip of excitement before skipping over to Hermione and grabbing her hand.

Before they had a chance to dissaparate, Mr. Ollivander smiled at them and said, "Make sure to tell Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Prior hello for me. Next time they should pick you up like gentlemen."

Hermione and Sophie looked at each other and laughed. _Of course_ he knew. They shouldn't be surprised. Mr. Ollivander always knew everything.

They both said, "Of course," before disapparating.

When they got to their room, Draco and Phillip were already there waiting for them. Each witch ran into her wizards arms. At the beginning of the summer who would have guessed it would turn out like this? The entire thing was backwards but, somehow, it worked.

"'Ermione and I want to go to zis curry place een London for deenner tonight," said Sophie, coming up for air. "Would zat be alright?"

Neither wizard argued, but Draco wasn't exactly excited about spending their evening among Muggles. Still, he understood why they'd chosen the place. Hermione didn't want to eat anywhere in Diagon Alley. No one knew she was here and she wanted to keep it that way.

On their way out of the London exit, the four of them pushed themselves to the side as another couple walked into the Leaky Cauldron. It was Gregory Goyle and Daphne Greengrass. Hermione and Draco, who had been holding hands, immediately let go.

After they were out, Draco looked back as the door closed. Goyle was watching him while Daphne whispered something to him that looked like, "I guess the rumors are true."

"Friends of yours?" asked Phillip as soon as the door closed, trying his best to assess the situation.

"Nope," answered Draco, grabbing Hermione's hand once again.

"How long have they been together?" Hermione asked while they walked to the curry place.

Draco shrugged. "Dunno. I wasn't even aware they were."

"Well, eet must be a while considering zat fancy engagement ring on 'er finger."

"I didn't notice," said Draco, even though he really had. His invitation must have been lost in the mail.

The curry place they went to was pretty good, considering it was run by Muggles. They had to wait in a line for almost an hour just to be seated. It was weird to think they couldn't just expand the room when it got too crowded. Hermione ordered for all of them since she had been here before with her parents. The curry was alright, not really Draco's style, but his favorite thing was the mango lassi's. He would drink one every day if he could.

After dinner they all took a walk around the area. Draco was the only one who hadn't seen this part of the city before - as in the part that wasn't overrun by wizards.

"You've really never walked through any part of London before?" asked Hermione.

"Why would I need to?" Draco said indifferently.

The other three exchanged a look. "I would like to blame eet on ze pureblood zing, but Phillipe ees one too and 'e 'as veesited several Muggle ceeties before."

After their walk, the four of them decided to head back to the Leaky Cauldron for drinks. Unfortunately, Goyle and his 'bride-to-be' were still there, so Hermione and Draco ordered several bottles of butterbeer and some firewhiskey and headed to their room. Sophie and Phillip had gotten their own room for the night, so they wouldn't be disturbed.

"So how has time alone with Phillip been?" asked Hermione, sitting on the bed while Draco poured them both drinks.

"Well, it's been … interesting. To say the least," he said, walking over and handing her a glass before taking a seat beside her.

"How so?"

"You know, it's funny. I never realized this before, but Phil and I have never actually had a real conversation before. Sure, we've had little snippets of moments, but these two days have been even more awkward than that first week you and I spent alone."

"What? No shagging to fill the void?" smirked Hermione.

Draco smiled sideways at her. "Smartass."

"I learn from the best," she said, grabbing his collar and pulling him in for a kiss.

There was no point in kidding themselves. _This_ was what they missed most about each other. They just wanted to be together.

Both of their glasses fell to the ground as the moved more onto the bed to have at it. But before they could get too heated someone knocked on the door.

"Go away!" shouted Draco between kisses.

"Uh, sorry to interrupt, guys!" shouted Phillip from the other side. "But, Draco, you might want to come down here. Some more of your _friends_ have arrived."

Draco pulled away from Hermione, looking muddled for a second before jumping off the bed and opening the door. "What do you mean?" he asked Phillip in a hushed voice.

"Wait here, Hermione!" shouted Phillip over Draco's shoulder before pulling the other wizard out of the room and shutting the door.

"Some witch claiming to be your ex-girlfriend is downstairs, talking about … things?"

"Things?" repeated Draco. Phillip nodded. "What kind of _things_?"

"Well, from what Sophie and I understood through our eavesdropping, she recently ran into … uhh … Ron at some fancy wizard hotel in France and they … well, she _claims_ they hooked up." Draco's jaw dropped. "Sophie doesn't believe her. Says girls like her always make stuff like that up to get a rise out of people. And she says her face is all squished. After Hermione, Ron would have higher standards than that."

"_Parkinson_," said Draco, like he had just come up with that conclusion, even though he knew right away that it was her. He had only ever had one _real_ girlfriend before and, unfortunately, it was her. Draco popped his head back into the room and said, "I'll just be a moment, Mione," before following Phillip downstairs.

He spotted them immediately. All of his former classmates: Goyle, Daphne, Blaise Zabini, Theodore Nott, a few stragglers - including a dark-haired witch sitting next to Daphne he swore he recognized - and, of course, Pansy Parkinson. Draco fixed his gaze on her. She looked back at him and smiled smugly. How he loathed her.

Sophie was sitting alone at the table directly in front of theirs, looking uncomfortable. Blaise seemed to be making cat calls at her, laughing as she continually made a point not to look at him.

When Draco walked up to her, she looked at him and said, "Your old friends are _really_ _charming_, Draco. I cannot see _why_ you do not talk to zem anymore."

"Pompous Mudblood bitch," said Blaise. Only Pansy laughed hysterically. Everyone else just looked indifferent.

Draco and Phillip's jaws dropped to the floor. They both reached for their wands but Sophie put up a hand to stop them.

"_Oh my Merlin_. Weell zat article never stop 'aunting me?"

"Sophie, did you not hear what he just said to you?" asked Phillip, his entire face turning red with rage.

"Yeah, yeah," said Sophie, waving it off. "'E already said eet once while you were gone. Get some new material!" she shouted back at him.

"If you have something to say to the lady, Zabini, I suggest you come over here and say it," said Draco, stepping in front of Sophie and crossing his arms confidently in front of his chest.

"I don't get out of my seat for anyone, let alone a Mudblood."

"I am not a Muggle-born!" shouted Sophie, jumping out of her seat. "Not zat zere ees anyzing wrong wiz zat," she added, looking at Draco reassuringly.

"So tell us, Draco. Is it true about you and Granger?" asked Pansy, leaning over the back of her chair to face them. "Daphne says she saw the two of you holding hands earlier."

"That's not what I said! I said they _might_ have been -"

"Irrelevant, Daph!" interrupted Pansy. "We've all seen the articles. And, uh … a personal source just may have confirmed it for me."

"You can come right out and say that it was Weasley. I really don't care."

Pansy's smile immediately vanished. "So it's true then?"

"I didn't say that," smirked Draco. "Besides, why do you care? You dumped me, remember?"

"Oooh, Draco. You were dumped by _'er_? But you 'ave slept wiz some of ze most beautiful weetches een ze world!" said Sophie, clearly referring to herself. "Why deed you slum eet?"

"Slim pickings at Hogwarts. Of course, Daphne was always good looking, but Goyle has had a thing for her since first year. Glad to see it finally worked out for you," said Draco, looking at his old friend.

"Um, thanks," said Goyle, taking a sip of his drink to avoid having to say something more.

"Is that really why you never went after me, Draco?" asked Daphne, leaning in curiously. "I always wondered why you chose Pansy over me."

Pansy sneered at her before looking back at Draco and saying, "You still haven't answered my question. Is-it-true-about-you-and-Granger?"

"Is-it-true-about-you-and-Weasley?" mocked Draco.

"Of course it is!"

"No it's not!" shouted Hermione, suddenly appearing beside Draco.

"Hermione, I told you to wait upstairs," Draco said sternly.

"And you _really_ believed I would do that? Honestly, Draco, sometimes you're as delusional as Parkinson."

"And what makes you think I'm lying?" asked Pansy, standing up from her seat.

"Well, for one you wouldn't be _bragging_ about it if you did. Ron is just as bad as a Muggle-born in your Slytherin eyes," said Hermione, crossing her arms in front of her chest in similar fashion to Draco. Sophie couldn't help but chuckle. It was funny how neither of them saw how truly similar they were. "Besides, Ron wouldn't touch you with a ten foot pole!"

Pansy smirked. "Well, it definitely wasn't ten feet, I'll give you that."

"Oh! Ears burning!" shouted Draco as everyone around him cringed.

Pansy chuckled before taking several steps forward. "Tell me something, Granger. If I'm lying, then how do I know he proposed to you a few months back? And you said you had to think about it, right?"

Hermione's face remained firm, but Draco could still see the hurt hiding behind her eyes. "A lot of people know that," said Hermione unconvincingly.

"Did you know he's training to be an Auror? I figured you might not since the two of you are on a break and all. He only made the decision last month, you know."

"STOP!" shouted Sophie, coming to Hermione's side and putting a protective arm around her. "She ees lying, 'Ermione. She probably saw Ron and overheard 'im and 'Arry talking, but zat ees eet. 'E would never touch the likes of 'er!"

"And who are you to judge?" asked Pansy, giving Sophie a small shove.

"Your worst nightmare eef you touch me again!"

"I'll do whatever the hell I want to you little -"

"PANSY!" shouted the dark-haired witch next to Daphne. She was standing up with both palms pressed firmly on the table. "Sit down, will you? We are not here for petty, schoolyard rivalries. We are here to celebrate Daphne and Gregory's engagement, and if you say one more word I will have you thrown out of this wedding party faster than a cheetah on a Firebolt!"

"Well said, Stori," said Daphne, clanking glasses with the other witch, who did not take her stern gaze off of Pansy.

Pansy huffed and looked at Hermione and Draco one last time before returning to her seat.

Blaise opened his mouth to say one last thing before Theodore beat him to it. "No one wants to hear it, Zabini. Just let it go." Blaise narrowed his eyes at him, but didn't try to speak again. Though, he did keep one eye fixed on Hermione, probably fantasizing about all of the chauvinistic things he wanted to say to her.

Once the Slytherin's attentions were elsewhere, Hermione took a seat at the closest table and waved her hand at the barmaid.

"Hermione, what are you doing?" asked Draco, looking at her skeptically.

"What we should have done in the first place. We have no reason to be afraid of them, Draco. Who cares what they think?"

"Well said!" shouted Sophie, taking a seat beside her. Phillip soon joined them.

Draco smirked at her before rolling his eyes. "Whatever you say, Mione. I'm going to go order for us at the bar."

"Something _really_ strong, please," requested Hermione, trying hard not to glance over at Pansy.

At the bar, Draco had just ordered and was waiting for their drinks when someone came up beside him. He knew right away that it was Goyle. That bulky profile still fit well in his shadow.

"What do you want, Goyle?" he asked without looking at him.

"Uhh … it's just … thanks," he said, casting his eyes to the floor.

"What?" Draco asked, finally turning towards his onetime friend. He wasn't sure he had heard him correctly.

"Thanks," repeated Goyle, looking up and meeting his gaze. "For saving my life. You did right."

And with that Goyle was gone, leaving Draco slightly baffled. But, overall, it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He had been waiting to hear those words for three years. And it was only because of her that he'd heard them now.

Draco looked across the room at Hermione - who was laughing at something Sophie said - with an even greater appreciation for her than he had before. In nine and a half weeks she had already made his life significantly better. And if this Ron and Pansy thing was true … well, that just might persuade her to forget about him for good. Draco swore right then and there that he would find out. Hermione deserved to know the truth and, hopefully, it would be a good enough excuse for her to leave Ron behind. He hoped.

XXX

Three days later, Hermione was having a hard time concentrating on her work. Her mind had been racing with horrible thoughts of Ron and Pansy ever since they had run into her, and earlier that day something had happened to only make it worse.

Sophie had convinced her to go and grab ice-cream at Fortescue's which had been reopened last year by a distant relative of Mr. Fortescue's. While there, Hermione ducked suddenly, pulling Sophie with her. Ron and Harry were walking by and they were talking about Pansy. She couldn't hear all of what they were saying, but her name was reason enough for Hermione to assume the worst. They then separated right in front of her table and said they would meet at Ron's flat later that night.

"'Ermione, zat does not mean anyzing," reassured Sophie after they climbed out from under the table.

She was right. It didn't mean anything. Ron would _never_ fool around with someone like Pansy. Then again, a couple months ago Hermione thought for sure she would never fool around with someone like Draco, and look how that had played out.

"I'm going to need the two of you to stay late tonight," said Mr. Ollivander only twenty minutes before the boys were supposed to arrive. "The school year is quickly approaching and I only get to take advantage of you for a couple more days."

Sophie groaned before excusing herself for a moment. Hermione noticed her slip her phone out of her pocket as she walked out of the room. Personally, she was a bit relieved. After her encounter earlier that day she just wasn't in the mood to see Draco yet. Maybe if they got off late enough she could talk him into just cuddling. That was really all she could handle right now.

XXX

"Ollivander is making the girls work late," said Phillip, reading his text message while he and Draco flew into their home country from somewhere in Sweden. "Guess we'll have to kill time at the pub."

Draco frowned. Sure, they _could_ do that, but he would much rather be spending time kissing Hermione than drinking with Phillip. Still … there was one_ other _thing he wanted to do.

"Do me a favor and ask Sophie if they know if Weasley's back from his little vacation yet."

"No need. She already told me he is. They saw him this afternoon."

"They saw him?" asked Draco. Phillip nodded. "How did that go?"

"They hid," answered Phillip, smiling sideways at him. "Why do you want to know, anyway? Have something in mind?"

Draco didn't answer. They flew the rest of the way in silence.

When they got to the Leaky Cauldron Phillip checked out a second room again while Draco headed up to the one he would be kicking Sophie out of to spend time with Hermione. After he put his stuff down he yelled out, "Ruskle!"

_Pop!_

"You called, Young Master?"

"Yes, Ruskle, I am going to need you to head down to the Ministry and find Hermione's home address for me. Time is of the essence, so be hasty as well as discrete."

"Yes, Young Master," said the house-elf, bowing.

_Pop!_

"So that's your plan? To go straight to their flat and confront him?"

Draco whipped around to see Phillip standing in the doorway.

"Not your cleverest idea, I admit, but who am I to judge? I avoided my ex-wife's lover for years. But you, you're going straight into the lion's den."

"I just need to know," said Draco, pulling a bottle of firewhiskey out of his backpack and taking a swig of it.

"Why? You don't still have feelings for that ex-girlfriend of yours, do you?"

"Hell no!" he retorted, taking another large sip.

"Then why?" Draco said nothing. Phillip sighed. "Telling her he shagged some other girl isn't going to make her run into your arms. If anything it will only push her away. She needs to find out on her own. Don't be the bearer of bad news, Draco. No one likes _that_ guy."

"Just let me do this, Phil. I'll figure out what to do with the information _after_ I have it."

Phillip looked uncertain, but still said, "Okay."

_Pop!_

"Got it, Sir!"

Draco took the piece of paper Ruskle was holding out to him and read the address. He was far less confident now that he was looking at it. If Ron lived alone he would be fine, but this was where Hermione lived too. He was, undoubtedly, going to see mementos of their life together. Maybe this was a bad idea.

"So when do we leave?" asked Phillip, taking the address from him. "Hey, I know where this is! We can use the Floo network to go to a wizarding pub about a block away."

So it was decided then. Draco and Phillip put on their best Muggle clothes and used the Floo network to go to this pub. They left it immediately, Phillip leading the way to Ron's and Hermione's flat. When they got there Draco looked up at the building, unsure if he wanted to proceed.

Phillip rang the buzzer. Draco froze. Was he really doing this?

No one answered. Phillip rang it again.

Someone came out of the building and held the door open. Draco darted inside, followed closely by Phillip. They ran up the stairs to the fourth floor. He found 4B down the hall and froze again. Phillip rolled his eyes before knocking. No one answered.

"Don't think anyone's home, mate."

Before he could suggest that they leave Draco disapparated. A second later he opened the door from the inside. "You're right. No one's here."

Phillip chuckled before walking inside, locking the door behind him.

The flat was pretty clean considering it hadn't had a woman's touch for a couple of months. There were a few things lain about and some dirty dishes in the sink, but nothing too bad.

While walking through, Draco came across a frame faced downwards. He picked it up and came face-to-face with a photo of Hermione and Ron laughing and kissing in front of what he assumed was his parents' house. The absurd appearance of it all could only belong to a Weasley. He quickly put the frame back the way it was. Out of sight, out of mind.

The photo next to it was still upright. It was of the golden trio in what must have been their first year, judging by how tiny they all were. Hermione's teeth were still large back then and her hair was a disaster but, looking back at it now, he wondered how he ever missed how adorable she was. Probably because he was too busy hating her. His father never let him forget how unacceptable it was for her to constantly outrank him. Even when he got a perfect score he always had to share the glory with the annoying Hermione Granger. How he had loathed her. It was funny how things could change.

A set of keys jingled outside the door. Draco and Philip both shot around, Draco instinctually pulling out his wand.

"What do you need your wand for? We're the ones breaking and entering."

The door opened and the silhouette of a man entered. He shut the door behind him and reached for the light switch. The lights shot on. "Merlin's beard!" shouted Ron, leaping a good three feet in the air. "What the bloody hell are you doing here, Malfoy?"

Draco was silent. What was he doing here again? Well, other than being an idiot. Ron kept looking at him expectantly but Draco just stood there, his wand still raised.

"Uh, now might be a good time to say something, mate," whispered Phillip, leaning in towards him.

Ron looked from Draco to his drawn wand and chuckled. "What are you going to do, exactly? Use the Cruciatus Curse on me? Or, better yet, the Imperius Curse? We both know you're fond of that one."

"Shut it, Weasley!" shouted Draco, suddenly feeling the strong urge to shoot a hex at him. But he fought it. "Tell me what happened between you and Parkinson."

Ron raised his eyebrows. Word sure did travel fast. "Put your wand down, Malfoy. We both know you're not going to do anything."

He walked past Draco - who lowered his wand - and into the kitchen, where he hung his keys on a little hook on the wall Draco was sure Hermione had hung for him.

"Are you really here about Parkinson? Judging from the shocking news I got last week, I would have guessed you were here about Hermione."

"I'm here _for_ Hermione."

"If Hermione wants to know if I did anything with Parkinson she can ask me herself. How do you know about it, anyway?"

"So it's true then?" Draco asked, suddenly feeling very hopeful.

Ron shook his head. "I didn't say that. Tell me how you know first."

Draco looked to Phillip, who shrugged. All of this interrogating was a job for Cunning, not Brawn.

"Parkinson told us," Draco finally answered. "About three days ago we ran into her in the Leaky Cauldron."

"Was Hermione there?" asked Ron, his ears starting to turn red.

Draco nodded. "Of course. She's been working in Ollivander's shop all week."

"She's been _here?_ For a week?"

"More like five days," corrected Phillip. "Five excruciatingly long days …" He took out his phone and immediately started texting Sophie.

"I can't believe it. My family is keeping secrets from me _again_!"

Draco shuddered as he realized what he needed to do. Clearing his throat, he looked at Ron and said, "I hate giving the Weasley's the benefit of the doubt, but she hasn't exactly told anyone she's here." Ugh. He hated being _nice_. Especially to Weasel.

"Hasn't told anyone?" asked Ron.

Draco shrugged. He wasn't about to repeat himself.

"Has that girl lost her bloody marbles or something? Just because she's treating me like dirt doesn't mean she has to do the same to everyone else."

"And how exactly has she treated you like dirt?" asked Draco, instinctually reaching for his wand again, but he only got as far as putting his hand on it in his pocket before catching himself.

"Well, I think _that's_ bloody obvious."

"The two of you are on a break. She hasn't done anything wrong," Draco said defensively.

"Merlin! Will you stop with this stupid act of yours already? It's weirding me out!"

"What _act_?"

"_This_!" shouted Ron, motioning to all of Draco. "Stop acting like you bloody care about her or something. We both know you're incapable of _that_."

That was it! His wand was coming out, but before he could get it fully out of his pocket Phillip had his aimed at him and said, "Drop it!"

Draco glanced sideways at him, his hand frozen but not letting his wand go.

"You can't hex someone every time you get a little peeved!"

"Oh sure! This coming from the guy who shot numerous hexes at his ex's fiancé!"

"While you have a valid point, I think you should know that I am not particularly proud of what I did that night. Sophie may have joined in but she was truly embarrassed by the entire ordeal. I definitely suffered the consequences by overreacting. Besides, do you really want to prove him right?" He had a point there. "Now, put down your wand and, instead, prove to him that you're legit."

Draco looked hesitantly at Phillip, but after a moment of inner debate he realized that he was right. He slowly released his fingers and let his wand drop back into his pocket.

"You might as well hex me now, because I'm never going to think you're legit. Maybe you can fool Hermione, but you'll never fool me. You're still the same old, cowardly Malfoy I knew in school."

"You and I both know Hermione's too smart to be fooled like that," said Draco. "You want to know the truth? Fine, here it is. When all of this started I was thinking about pissing you off, and the only reason she went along with it is because she wanted no strings attached. But, somewhere along the way, she started to feel something." Draco couldn't help but smile as Ron cringed. He was enjoying this more than he should have, but he couldn't help it. He still loathed the bloke. "And, as much as I hate to admit it, so did I."

"Bullshit."

"I'm telling the truth! I care about her!"

"Care about her? You don't even know her!"

"I know more about her than you think! Maybe even more than you!"

Ron threw his head back and laughed. "Do you _really_ think you know Hermione better than I do? Maybe _you're_ the one who's lost his marbles."

"Do you want me to prove it to you?"

"Uhh … Draco … he _has_ known Hermione on a personal level for quite a bit longer than you. Maybe you shouldn't -"

"Bring it!" shouted Ron.

There was a crash in the fireplace. They all looked over to see someone making a less than graceful landing. Draco recognized those horrible glasses immediately.

"Evening Potter," he said, practically spitting the other wizard's name.

"Malfoy? What are _you_ doing here?" he inquired, walking protectively to his friend's side.

"He came to find out if I shagged Parkinson. _Apparently_, she's been telling everyone that we did."

"Parkinson?" repeated Harry, raising his eyebrows. "Even Malfoy has to realize she was lying to get under his skin."

"So … you didn't do it then?" asked Draco, suddenly feeling very sheepish.

Ron looked at him and said, "Of course not! She was staying at the same hotel as us and overheard our conversation."

"Snooped is more like it," said Harry.

"She read both of those stupid articles, but I guess she didn't believe it till she heard us. She tried to tell me that if we shagged it would really piss the two of you off."

"So why didn't you do it then? I'm sure you're already well aware that Hermione and I have done more than snog."

Ron turned red in the face while Harry started to reach for his wand. Phillip got to his first and shouted, "_Expelliarmus_!" When he had Harry's wand he said, "I get the feeling this is going to get a bit heated. If you all could just give me your wands now it would really save me a lot of trouble."

Draco and Ron looked at each other fiercely before both reached for their wands, paused for a moment, but ultimately handed them to Phillip.

"Ah, much better. Now we don't have to worry about picking up anyone's pieces later."

"I'm sorry, who are you?" Harry asked Phillip.

"This is Phil," said Draco.

"_Phill-ip_," corrected Phillip.

"He's been traveling with us for the majority of the summer." _And_ snogged Hermione once or twice. But he decided not to say that out loud, as tempting as it was. Hermione was going to be angry enough as it is; no need to add heat to the fire.

"And I can vouch for the whole caring thing. I admit, it seems unlikely. Draco's not exactly the most compassionate of wizards, and he's definitely not forthcoming with his feelings -"

"What the hell does that mean?" Draco asked offensively.

"I think you already know what I'm talking about."

"You sound like Sophie. Both of you need to mind your own bus -"

"How long?" Ron asked suddenly.

Draco turned to him. "What?"

Ron gulped. "How long into the summer before … _this_ whole thing happened?"

For the first time since he arrived, Draco looked at Ron thoughtfully. "I don't think I should be the one answering this."

"_How long_, Malfoy?" Ron repeated, his fists clenching as he avoided looking at Draco.

Draco, once again, looked to Phillip who still just shrugged. This was his call.

Looking back at Ron, Draco sighed and said, "I kissed her about a week into it, but she rejected me at first. It was another week before anything really began."

"And how long before you …" He paused. Somehow he just couldn't say it. But he didn't need to. Draco understood what he was asking.

"It was just over three weeks in," he answered honestly.

"Three weeks …" repeated Ron, covering his face as he hunched over at the waist. Harry looked unsure of what he was supposed to do and fidgeted with his hands for a minute before putting one on Ron's shoulder. "And that letter your house-elf stole from me, what did it say?" asked Ron, his voice muffled through his hands.

"Hermione already had me write to you and tell you that wasn't my -"

"DON'T BLOODY LIE TO ME!" shouted Ron as he shot upright, his face even redder than his hair. "I damn well know that letter was from you so _tell me_ what it said!"

Draco's nostrils flared. He didn't like this game anymore. "It was … a very descriptive letter about the things Hermione and I had done. She did something to piss me off and I wanted to get back at her. I tried to take it back before she found out, but _you_ were so damn pushy."

Ron's eyes bulged as he leapt forward and tried to take a swing at Draco, but before he could succeed Phillip used his wand to freeze him. "There will be none of that," he said, taking a protective stance in front of the blonde wizard before reversing the spell.

Ron lowered his hands but did not remove his flaming eyes from Draco. "You say you've changed, but you still seem like the same manipulative bastard to me."

"I think you need to go now, Malfoy," said Harry, stepping forward. "You got the answer you wanted."

Draco looked at Ron, who had his eyes recast to the floor before nodding. When he and Phillip moved to leave, Ron shouted, "Wait!" They both stopped and returned their attention to him. "Don't leave yet. I still need to prove to you that I know Hermione better than you. What do you say to a little game?"

"What kind of game?" asked Draco, raising an inquisitive eyebrow.

Ron smirked. "Drinking, of course. I hear you're _really_ good at it."

"Uhh, Ron, I don't think -"

"What are the terms?"

Ron's smirk grew wider. "Harry and uh … _Phil _-"

"Phillip."

"- can write up some questions. Whoever gets one wrong has to take a shot. Simple."

"Deal," said Draco impulsively. He didn't know what he was thinking. He very well knew he wasn't going to win, but something about Weasley's smug look made it so he couldn't say no. He _needed_ to beat him.

"Well, this won't end badly," said Phillip, rolling his eyes.

"Ron, this really isn't -"

"Just write the questions, Harry."

Harry sighed before going into a drawer in the kitchen, pulling out some parchment and a quill, and sitting down with it at the dining room table. Phillip soon joined him.

"I know this isn't really the time to be starstruck, but I'm a _really_ big fan of yours. My girlfriend would just die if she knew -"

"Phil!"

"Go sit in the other room and let us concentrate, Draco!"

Draco groaned, but did as he was told. Ron looked at the couch for a split second before saying, "I'll go wait in the bedroom. Come and get me when you're ready."

It took about ten minutes, but once Harry and Phillip felt like they had a good amount of questions they called Draco and Ron over. Ron went to the kitchen first and pulled out a bottle of firewhiskey and two shot glasses.

They sat on opposite ends of the table while Harry and Phillip sat at the head of it.

"Okay, we'll start out simple. What is Hermione's favorite color?"

Draco chuckled. What was that, the default first question for games like this? "Red," he blurted out.

Ron smirked and shook his head. "Trick question. She says her favorite color is red since she liked it when she was little and then became a Gryffindor, but if you look at all her stuff about three-fourths of it is green."

Draco raised his eyebrows. "Really? And when she bought that green teddy to wear I thought the color was for _my_ benefit." Ron turned bright red again. Draco grinned widely before saying, "Alright Weasel, I'll give you that one." He poured himself a shot and took it in one smooth swig. "Next question."

"What is her favorite food?" asked Harry. Draco was having a serious case of déjà vu.

"She eats spaghetti about every other night," said Ron.

Now it was Draco's turn to smirk. "Wrong. It's her mum's roast beef. She did a Sunday Roast every week when she was younger."

Ron looked to Harry for clarification. He gulped. "I'm afraid he's right. I went with her for it a couple years back and that's what she said."

Ron said nothing. He just poured himself a shot and took it, his eyes fixed on Draco the entire time.

Clearing his throat, Harry read the next question. "Where have she and her parents gone on holiday every year since she was five?"

"Canterbury," said Ron immediately. "She has family near there."

Draco didn't even try to fight his answer since he had absolutely no idea where she holidayed. He started pouring his shot before he even heard Harry say, "Correct."

"Does Hermione have any pets?"

Draco looked baffled, but Ron quickly answered, "Yes, Crookshanks, her cat. _And_ growing up she had a golden retriever named Jacks, but he died when she was twelve."

"No need to go above and beyond," said Draco, pouring himself another shot.

As it turned out, Draco knew even less about Hermione than he thought he did. He took countless more shots during their game while Ron only took one for a question neither of them could answer. What was her favorite pastime as a child? They were surprised to learn that reading - both of their guesses - was not the answer. Harry wouldn't tell them what it really was.

While Draco was at the point of barely sitting upright, Phillip had lost all interest in their little game. He chuckled while playing with his Muggle cell phone and said, "Sophie doesn't believe I'm with Harry Potter. She's going to try to ditch Hermione and come here."

Suddenly Draco had no problem sitting still. He was on full alert. "You _told_ her we were here?"

"Uh, yeah … they got off ten minutes ago and she wanted to know where we were. I'm not going to lie to her. Don't worry, she won't tell Hermione."

"But I'm always looking over your shoulder when you do that 'texting' thing. What if Hermione does too?"

_Pop!_

"Sophie, get off of me!"

They all whipped around to see Sophie holding her hands over a struggling Hermione's eyes. When she saw all of them sitting there she yipped.

_Pop!_

They all looked at each other with wide eyes for a moment before Philip screamed, "Hide the evidence!"

Since Phillip was the only one with a wand, this was easier said than done. Harry stuffed the parchment into his shirt while Phillip quickly transfigured the firewhiskey bottle into a vase and flowers. He didn't get a chance to do anything with the shot glasses before they heard another '_Pop!_' Ron grabbed them quickly and put them down by his chair leg.

"What is _this_?" demanded Hermione, stepping forward while Sophie walked solemnly behind her. "Are you kidding me right now? And _Harry_." She looked sharply at her best friend. "I'm not surprised that they're acting childish, but you? How could you let this happen?"

"I …" The wizard turned bright scarlet. "Did attempt to -"

"Draco, why the hell are you here?"

Draco felt himself tipping sideways, but caught himself in what he thought was one fluid motion. "I -" hiccup! "Ooh … what?"

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Hermione stared at him furiously before eyeing the vase in the center of the table. She flicked her wand at it, immediately revealing the bottle of firewhiskey. "What have all of you been doing here? Having a drink and reminiscing about old times?" This time she looked to Ron for an answer.

"Uhh … yes."

"Don't you dare lie to me, Ronald Weasley!"

"Don't get mad at me. He's the one who showed up here _uninvited_," he said, motioning to Draco.

"Draco, _why did you come here_?" she demanded, not even caring that he was having a really hard time focusing on anything but _not_ falling over right now.

"Uhh …" He put a hand on his throbbing head. "What was the question again?"

"Phillip," she said, looking at the other wizard, "why did the two of you come here?"

Phillip looked at Sophie over Hermione's shoulder, who rolled her eyes and shrugged. She just wanted this to be over with. "He came to find out if that whole thing with his squishy faced ex-girlfriend was true. But not because he was jealous!" he said quickly. "Because he wanted to find out for you."

"For me?" she said, huffing. "And?" She looked at Ron and waited for an answer.

Ron rolled his eyes before saying, "Of course it's _not_ true, Hermione. She's like a bloody female Malfoy. I would never sink that low to get back at you."

Hermione's jaw dropped. Tears flooded her eyes as she looked away from the wizard she had loved for so many years.

"No, Hermione, that came out wrong. I didn't mean it like that."

Draco stood up from his seat and said, "How dare you speak to her that way! Why I oughta - Oomph!" He toppled over and landed hard on the ground.

Hermione looked down at him and shook her head before saying, "Phillip, Sophie, take him back to the room. I'll deal with _all_ of you later."

The two looked at each other for a moment before going over and helping Draco to his feet. Once they had their arms sturdily around him, Phillip put both Harry's and Ron's wands on the table, and they disapparated out of there.

"Harry, give us a minute, will you?"

She didn't have to tell him twice. Harry stood up to go into the other room, completely forgetting about the parchment tucked inside of his shirt. It fell out, but before he could reach for it, Hermione used her wand to bring it to her. He ran out of there very fast.

"What _is_ this?"

Ron sighed. "Just a game we were playing. I won."

"Well, _obviously_. How could you let him drink that much? He could get alcohol poisoning!"

"He's _fine_! Why do you bloody care so much?"

"Because I care about him! You don't know what he's been through, Ron! What he's going through now!"

"And- I-don't-care! Neither should you!"

Hermione sighed and shook her head. "Just … tell me what happened with you and Pansy so I can get out of here."

"If I said I shagged her, would you be angry?"

"Of course I would! I understand the irony, Ron. She is to me what Draco is to you. Even though I don't have the right to be angry I can't help how I feel."

"Good," he said, happy to know she still had some feelings for him. "But I didn't."

Hermione let out a breath of relief. Thank Merlin! "What happened then?"

"I'm not going to lie, she offered. Her own pathetic attempt at getting back at Malfoy for …" he gulped, "shagging you. She kissed me and, I admit, it took a minute or so for me to come to my senses and push her off, but I _did_ push her off."

Hermione stared at him pensively. "If it's any consolation, I pushed Draco off the first time he kissed me."

"I know. He told me you rejected him."

Hermione reached out and grabbed his hand. "Ron, you have to believe me when I say I didn't mean for any of this to happen. I went into this hating Malfoy just like I was supposed to. But then he apologized for everything and … and it all just kind of took off from there. It was an accident."

Ron looked down at their clasped hands yearningly. "So what happens in sixteen days?" he asked.

Hermione sighed. "I don't know yet. But … I did promise I would come home to you at the end of the summer …"

"I don't want you to do that if it's not what you want, Hermione," he said, pulling his hand away. "I don't want you to choose me because you feel obligated."

"I - I don't."

"Yes you do. If you didn't you wouldn't say that." Ron walked over to where he had the photo of them turned face down. He lifted it and looked at how happy they had once been. He put it back upright. "If you still want to be with me at the end of all this I'll be here. Now, go and check on him. We both know you want to."

"Ron …" Hermione went up behind him and gave him a hug. He put his hand on top of hers and leaned into her for a moment before pulling away, and walking into the room where Harry was waiting.

Hermione looked after him for a moment before apparating back to the Leaky Cauldron. When she got there Phillip and Sophie were trying to give water to a groaning Draco.

"Get out," she said. They both obeyed and did not look back as they slammed the door.

Hermione and Draco locked eyes for a moment before she waved her wand at him. He immediately threw his hand over his mouth and made a break for the washroom. While he vomited into the toilet, Hermione walked in and took a seat beside him, stroking her hand through his hair.

"Did you really think you could win that game? Ron _has_ known me intimately a whole decade longer than you."

"Ugh … of course not," he said between heaves. "But I had to at least try."

"You and your pride," she said.

"Hermione, what … was your favorite pastime as a child?"

"Yes, I saw you both got that one wrong," she said, realizing she was still holding the list of questions. Harry had kept score. 16-1 Ron. She sighed. "I collected seashells. Still do, sometimes. My room back home is a bit overrun with them."

"Thanks … ugh … I'll try to remember that," he said before vomiting again.

"I hope you know you deserve this," she said, smirking at him.

Draco glanced sideways at her. "What did you and Weasel talk about?"

"None of your business," she said, moving some loose hairs out of his eyes. "I don't know what you thought you were doing, but I didn't need you to find out about him and Parkinson for me. Ron would never lie if I asked."

"And was he telling the truth?"

Hermione nodded. "Yes. Though, the skank did kiss him."

"I believe it …" he said, sighing into the toilet before flushing it. He knew it was all out of his system. "I'm sorry, Mione. Sometimes I just act impulsively."

"I know," she said, helping him to his feet.

He gargled with some water in the sink a few times before brushing his teeth. Hermione went into the bedroom and changed into her nightclothes. When he got in there she was already in bed. He stripped to his boxers, used his wand to turn off the lights and climbed in beside her, grabbing her into a spooning position. He knew there would be no shagging tonight. He'd ruined any chance of that.

XXX

Two days later Hermione and Sophie were finishing up their last wands before the boys were supposed to arrive that night. Starting tomorrow they would be back in their proper teams and both were ecstatic about it.

The day had barely begun when they heard Mr. Ollivander talking to someone in the back. Several minutes later Phillip walked into the room. Alone.

"Darling!" shouted Sophie, leaping into his arms. "You're early!"

"Uhh … yes," said Phillip, looking over her shoulder at Hermione.

"Where's Draco?" she asked, stepping forward.

Phillip pulled away from Sophie, never taking his eyes off of Hermione. "Um, Hermione, there's something you need to know."

Her heart stopped. "He's alright, isn't he?"

"Yes, yes, he's fine. It's just …"

"Spit it out, Phillip!"

"Ms. Granger, watch your tone," said Mr. Ollivander, walking into the room. "I'm afraid Mr. Malfoy will not be returning for the remainder of the summer."

It felt like a thousand knives had just been jammed into her heart. So this was it for them. No more Hermione and Draco. But where was he? What could have happened to make him leave so suddenly? And then she knew. Tears flooded her eyes as she realized what must have happened.

"His father …"


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N: The climax is finally approaching! But don't worry, it's not over yet! Enjoy!**

**And - just a reminder - the character, Great Uncle Stabby Malfoy, is not my OC. He belongs to superscar, who has given me permission to use him for my own comic relief ;)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

"Yes, his father, Ms. Granger. I got an urgent message from Narcissa late last night, requesting he come home immediately."

"Is he … is he dead?" she asked, barely managing to choke out the words.

"No, he's not dead. But it won't be much longer. Narcissa suspects it will happen sometime within the next day or two. He hasn't had anything to eat or drink in over a week now. You can only force someone to hold on for so long."

"How did he take it?" she asked, looking at Phillip.

"Not well, I suspect, seeing as he took off immediately. There wasn't much time for me to get a reaction out of him."

"I hate to sound unsympathetic, but I really think it's for the best," said Mr. Ollivander. "That horrid man was only holding his son back."

Hermione stared coldly at him. "How can you say that? That is his father!"

She immediately disapparated. Only seconds passed before Sophie and Phillip found her sprawled out on the bed in their room.

"'Ermione, deed you know 'is father was eell?" Sophie asked, taking a seat beside her head and stroking her hair.

Hermione nodded. "The reason he got mad at me in France was because I stole his letters. He caught me reading one and he flipped out. They were all from his mother, pleading for him to come home since his father's health was deteriorating."

"I 'ad no idea," said Sophie, looking to Phillip.

"I didn't either," he said.

"I have to go there!" shouted Hermione, suddenly popping up from the bed. "I have to do something!"

"What could you do?" asked Sophie.

"I don't know. Just be there for him. He shouldn't be alone, Sophie. He'll be taking care of his mom, but who will be taking care of him?"

"Hermione, wait," said Phillip, sitting down beside her. "Let's think about this rationally for a moment. His parent's … they're not exactly fond of you, are they?"

"You know they aren't," she said, slumping back down on the bed. "But what am I supposed to do, Phillip? I can't just sit here and twiddle my thumbs. Maybe I could just … stop by. Bring him something. Flowers maybe. Or …"

She shot up again. This time Sophie barely had enough time to grab onto her arm before she was disapparating. Phillip was left behind.

They reappeared in a small flat, different from the one the other night. Sophie immediately noticed a photo of a familiar dark-haired wizard in glasses and a pretty red-headed girl. "'Ermione … Ees zis 'Arry Potter's flat?"

"Yes," she said, heading over to the hutch and searching through it savagely.

"Oh, zis ees so exciting! I 'ave to call my mother!" She whipped out her phone but Hermione reached out and grabbed it from her.

"No! You can't call _anyone_! No one can know we're here!"

"But why _are_ we 'ere?"

"I need to find something," she said, moving to the closet by the front door and searching through it in the same fashion she had searched the hutch. She went all around the flat like this, Sophie using her wand to clean up the mess when Hermione was through with each section.

They had just arrived in the bedroom upstairs when they heard a noise. Both of their ears went on full alert as the the front door opened.

"Hide!" shouted Hermione as she ducked under the bed. Sophie immediately darted for the closet.

Hermione listened as someone rustled around in the living room for a moment before heading up the stairs and into the bedroom. They tossed something onto the bed before walking across the room and … she gulped … opening the closet.

"AHH!" they screamed.

"AHH!" Sophie screamed in return.

"What are you doing here?" asked Harry in what was still a fairly pleasant tone considering he had just caught a strange girl in his closet. "Hermione!" he shouted.

She groaned before climbing out from under the bed. "Alright, alright. You caught me." She realized very quickly that what Harry had tossed on his bed was his shirt. Sophie was eyeing him hungrily. "For Merlin's sake, Harry, cover yourself!" She picked up his shirt from the bed and tossed it to him. He blushed slightly before putting it back on.

"What are you doing here?" he asked once he was fully clothed.

"Looking for something," she said vaguely.

"What are you looking for?"

"Oh, do not bother. I 'ave been trying to get 'er to tell me for ze last hour."

"I need Draco's wand."

Sophie huffed. "Oh _sure_. You tell _'im_."

"Draco's wand?" repeated Harry. She nodded. "What do you need it for? I'm supposed to give it to the Museum of Magical and Mystical Relics next month."

"Yeah, I know, but you can't do that. It's rightfully his and he needs it back."

"It's not rightfully his, it's mine. I disarmed him, remember?"

"I don't care about the rules, Harry! Please, just give it to me!"

There was a faint '_Pop!'_ downstairs.

"Deed you two 'ear somezing?"

"You can't have it, Hermione."

"Stop being difficult, Harry! You don't understand! I _need_ it!"

"Harry, are you up there?" they heard someone call from downstairs.

Hermione and Harry looked at each other, both saying, "Ginny," before Hermione darted back under the bed. Sophie hopped around for a second, but didn't get anywhere before the red-headed witch was walking into the room.

"What the hell is this?" she asked, turning so red you couldn't even see her freckles. "I know you. You're that _girl_ from the article."

"Uh … yes. Yes I am," admitted Sophie, not knowing what else to say.

"What are you doing here? Is Hermione with you?"

"I cannot tell a lie," said Sophie, glancing over at Harry. Just when he thought she was going to do the right thing and tell her Hermione was under the bed, she instead leapt into his arms and announced, "'Arry and I are een love and we cannot keep eet from you any longer!"

"What?" said Harry, blushing brightly as she forced him into a heated kiss.

"_Get your stinking hands off my man_!" shouted Ginny, yanking the other witch off of him by the hair.

"Ahh! Careful you leettle geenger bi -"

"Sophie, stop!" yelled Hermione, climbing out from under the bed. "You don't need to protect me _all_ the time."

"Zat was more for me, actually," smirked Sophie. "'Ave you already forgotten zat I asked you to eentroduce me to 'Arry Potter after our first meession?"

"Yes you did, and I refused. I can see now I made the right decision."

"Hermione, what are you doing here? And why the hell are you hiding from me?"

"Because of that," she said, pointing at the hostile look on Ginny's face. "I don't need your judgment, Ginny. I already know what you think of me."

"What I _think_ of you? I think you're a bloody idiot, that's what I think! How could you fall under that git's spell? You _know_ what he does to women. We've certainly laughed over a number of stories throughout the years."

"You don't understand … he's _different_."

"He seemed the same to me," said Harry.

Ginny looked at him accusingly. "No way, you saw him? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Uh … Ron didn't want anyone to know."

Ginny gasped. "Ron saw him _too_? How the hell did this happen?" she asked, looking at Hermione.

She shrugged. "Don't look at me. I had nothing to do with it, other than breaking it up."

"Great, just great!" said Ginny, throwing her arms in the air. "Am I not in the inner circle anymore?"

"Ginny, Sophie, go downstairs for a second, will you? I need to talk with Hermione alone for a minute."

Ginny looked coldly at him for a second, but eventually agreed. "Come along you little French twat," she said, leading the way downstairs.

"Seence you are clearly upset, I weell let zat slide, but eensult me again and you weell suffer ze consequences."

Once they were gone Harry shut the door. "What's going on with you, Hermione? Ron told me that you said you're in love with Malfoy."

"I never said that! I just didn't say I didn't love him. He assumed the rest."

"Well … do you?" he asked.

Hermione sighed. "Yes."

"More than you love Ron?"

She paused and thought hard about her answer. "It's hard to say. With Draco everything is so new, but, with Ron … well, we've kind of fallen into a rut, haven't we?"

"I suppose you have."

"We've gotten to the point where we're either supposed to breakup or get married, and I'm not sure I'm ready for either of those yet."

"Who says you have to? If you're not ready, you're not ready."

"But that's just it. I don't know if I'm ever going to be ready. What if Ron and I aren't meant to be together?"

Harry sighed. "Well, you have two weeks to figure that out. No point trying to rush an answer now."

"But … I fear I might already have my answer." Her eyes glossed over as she avoided looking at her best friend.

Harry looked at her for a long moment. He gravely headed into the closet, pulled a wooden box off of the top shelf and handed it to Hermione. She opened it up to reveal the wand used to destroy You-Know-Who. When she looked at it the tears she had been holding back finally released.

"I trust your judgment, Hermione. Whatever decision you make, I support you. Just don't be hasty with it. You still have time."

"Thank you," she said, closing the box and hugging it to her chest.

Harry helped her wipe the tears off her face before the two of them headed downstairs. Ginny was sitting at the kitchen table, looking in a hand mirror while Sophie fussed with her hair. "I zink a seemple updo like zis weell look great at an outdoor wedding. A few stray strands are lovely but too many weell 'ide your pretty face."

"Oh, I really do like it! Are you sure I can pull something like this off?"

"Absolutely! You look beautiful! Doesn't she look beautiful?" Sophie asked, looking at Hermione and Harry.

Both nodded. "Breathtaking," said Harry."

"Oh, zat ees so sweet!" Sophie looked at the box in Hermione's hands. "Deed you find what you were looking for?"

"Yes," said Hermione, tightening her grip on the box. "Are you ready?"

"Yes, just one second!" exclaimed Sophie.

Ginny was already out of her chair and grabbing a piece of parchment and a quill from a drawer. She handed it to Sophie, who proceeded to write down all of her information.

"September twenty-second ees ze date, right?"

"Yes," said Ginny, beaming. She looked at Harry and Hermione. "Sophie has agreed to do my hair for the wedding!"

"Oh," said a surprised Hermione. Had Ginny already forgotten the other witch had just made-out with her fiancé? Probably best not to bring it up again. "Oh, thank Merlin. She had asked me to do it before and I was secretly dreading it."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Oh, you would have been fine."

"But Sophie's better. She's been handling my hair all summer."

"Why you want to 'ide your sweet face behind zat bushy 'ead of 'air I weell never understand."

Hermione walked over and grabbed Sophie's hand, ready to disapparate.

"Hermione, wait," said Ginny, pulling her into a hug. "If you're not going to owl Ron, at least owl me so we know you're okay."

"I will," she said, hugging her back. "I'm sorry I haven't. I just didn't want you to be mad at me."

"While I do think you're being stupid, I'm not mad. I've had some time to cool off since the article first came out. Besides, my wedding has me stressed out enough as it is. I don't need to add to that." After glancing slyly at Harry, Ginny leaned in and whispered, "You'll have to tell me the more _intimate_ details later." She winked.

Hermione chuckled. "I'll see you both soon," she said, letting go of Ginny and once again taking hold of Sophie's hand. The two of them apparated back to their room at the Leaky Cauldron. When they got there Phillip was pacing about.

"There you are!" he shouted. "I have been worried sick! Why didn't you text me, Soph?"

"'Ermione took my phone," she said, reaching into her pocket and stealing it back. "Oh, twenty-four unread texts. Ees zat not a beet excessive?"

"_Worried sick_!" he repeated.

"So what deed you get?" asked Sophie, poking at the box.

"Something for Draco," she said, sinking down on the bed. "I think the two of you should know something. About why everyone's so upset with me and Draco being together."

Sophie and Phillip exchanged a look. "We figured this was about more than just Ron," said Phillip.

"_And_ a schoolyard feud," added Sophie. "We already deed some research. We know Draco and 'is family were followers of You-Know-Who."

"And that he was somehow involved in Professor Dumbledore's death."

"And we sort of caught on to zat whole zing wiz ze woman at ze Zree Broomsteecks."

Not wanting to her anymore, Hermione interrupted them and said, "I am well aware you're not idiots."

"And we're well aware zat Draco ees not a bad person."

"So what else did you want to tell us?" asked Phillip, both he and Sophie taking a seat on either side of Hermione.

Hermione closed her eyes and sighed. "During the war I was tortured by Draco's aunt Bellatrix at his home. Draco was there and he didn't stop her."

"_Oh_," they both said, looking both intrigued and horrified at the same time.

"That … is definitely a deal breaker," said Phillip.

"Maybe … maybe not," sighed Hermione. "If he'd tried to do something she probably would have killed him. She may have been his aunt but she was only loyal to one person. She even killed her own niece during the Battle of Hogwarts."

"But you steel 'ave to leeve wiz zat memory, 'Ermione. Zat cannot be easy."

"It's not," she said, unconsciously stroking the scar on her arm. "But I want to be there for him, and that means going to Malfoy Manor."

"Hermione, no!" shouted Phillip, pointing a stern finger at her. "He wouldn't want you to put yourself through that!"

"Actually, he asked me to go there with him at the end of the summer. He thinks it will be good for me."

"Then do it then when it's about you! Not now!"

"I need to go," she said, shedding a single tear that landed on the box. "I need to do this. I just … wanted to tell someone first."

"So zere ees no talking you out of zis?" asked Sophie.

Hermione shook her head. "No. I'm going. I won't stay long. He needs to be with his family right now, not me. I just want him to know I'm here for him."

"Do you want us to go with you?" asked Phillip.

Hermione shook her head again. "I need to do this alone."

She gave them each a hug before taking one last look at the box in her hands. It was little consolation for what he was going through, but she hoped it would help.

Standing up, Hermione immediately apparated to just outside of the wrought-iron gates of Malfoy Manor, unable to go directly inside. The Malfoy's had put several charms up after the golden trio's escape from this place, intending for it to never happen again.

She reached a hand out to open the gates but, before she could, the iron started contorting until it became the frightening face she remembered. Flashes of Bellatrix torturing her entered her mind. She took several steps back.

"State your purpose!"

Hermione took a few deep breaths before saying, "My name is Hermione Granger and I'm here to see Draco Malfoy."

There was a slight hesitation before the gates swung open. She stepped forward. Several paces in she jumped at a rustling in the hedges, only to discover one of the albino peacocks fluttering about. She released the breath she had been holding. She didn't know why she was so on edge. It wasn't like You-Know-Who was still lurking around somewhere.

Hermione continued on, the sound of gravel crunching beneath her feet as she steadily approached the place that still haunted her dreams. Before she even fully ascended the stone steps, the door to Malfoy Manor was opening, revealing a radiant light. She could just make out a silhouette walking towards her. Merlin, she hoped it was Draco. Maybe then she wouldn't even have to go inside.

Standing just outside the entrance, Hermione waited for the person to arrive. The closer they came, the more she could make them out: tall and slender with flowing blonde hair and a superior expression. Nope, this was definitely not Draco. This was Narcissa Malfoy, and she did not look pleased.

"Oh, it's you," she said indifferently. "I didn't think you'd have the nerve to come here." The two women stared firmly at each other, neither breaking their gaze, even though Hermione desperately wanted to. There was nothing colder and more frightening than the eyes of Narcissa Malfoy. It was strange to think she once saw Draco's eyes in this same manner.

Motioning inside, Narcissa said, "Come along," and pivoted around in one perfect step. The woman seemed to float as she guided Hermione through the hallway, several portraits whispering nasty things as she passed them. She tried not to look at them, but when she caught sight of something hideous out of the corner off her eye, she turned and came face-to-face with Great Uncle Stabilius Malfoy. He really did look like a Muggle's depiction of a witch, sans the green complexion. When she locked eyes and smiled at him he nearly melted out of his sallow skin. "Dirty, filthy Mudblood! Stop looking at me!" he shouted, only making her smile wider.

"Nice to meet you too, Uncle Stabby."

"How do you know my name?"

Hermione did not answer him.

Narcissa looked back at her curiously before reaching out for the bronze-handled door at the end of the hallway and opening it. Hermione froze, unable to take that final step out of the hallway and into the drawing room.

Narcissa took several steps before turning around. She looked at Hermione with slight pity in her eyes. "Yes, I suppose your memories of the last time you were here aren't exactly fond ones. If you want to wait there -"

"No! No, it's fine," said Hermione, putting a hand over the scar on her arm before taking her first step into the Malfoy's drawing room since the day she had been tortured there.

Walking deeper into the room, Hermione noticed the crystal chandelier Dobby had destroyed during their escape was now rehung and as magnificent as ever. She was guided to an uncomfortable looking sofa and practically pushed onto it by Narcissa.

"Would you like some tea?"

Hermione eyed the woman curiously. "Why are you being so decent to me? I've seen pieces of your letters, and that was _before_ you knew anything was going on between us."

Narcissa chuckled, but without any humor behind it. "I didn't think you'd have the nerve to downright ask me that. But, if you must know, I promised my son that if you showed up I would not hex you upon arrival. He was pretty confident you would."

Hermione looked down at the box in her hands and tried to hide her smile from Narcissa. For the first time since she decided to come here she knew she had chosen right.

"Don't look so smug about it. My son is a tad fickle when it comes to women. You, my dear, are just a phase. This too shall pass," she said callously. "Now … tea?"

Hermione kept tight lips as she glared at Narcissa through narrow slits. "No thank you," she said coolly.

"I believe I will go fetch my son now. No use delaying the inevitable."

Hermione knew right then that when it came to choosing between Narcissa Malfoy and Molly Weasley as a mother-in-law, Molly won hands down. Narcissa was awful. But if Draco could change maybe she could too … but she wouldn't hold her breath.

"Hermione!"

Hermione jumped out of her seat and smiled when she saw the blonde wizard she had come to love standing on the other side of the room. "Draco," she said, reaching her arms out for him.

He ran into them, carefully breathing her in before whispering, "I knew you'd come." He ignored the disgusted remarks from the portraits in the room as he pulled back and put both hands on her cheeks. He stared into her amber eyes for a long moment before leaning in and kissing her. The protests only became louder. Hermione lifted her wand and silenced them.

When their kiss ended, Draco pulled her close again. "I'm sorry I left so suddenly. When I got the news I didn't know how much time I had."

"How bad is it?" asked Hermione, nuzzling into his shoulder. She could feel Draco gulp against her head. His heart was beating exceptionally fast.

"Pretty bad. He's just been lying there, staring vacantly at the ceiling, for days. My mother isn't even sure when he last slept."

"I'm so sorry, Draco," said Hermione into his shoulder. "This shouldn't be happening to you."

"These things happen, Hermione. People die every day. At this point we've just been delaying the inevitable."

Hermione's face distorted. Isn't that what his mother just said? She groaned. Maybe they were more alike than she thought.

"Before I forget," she said, pulling away and reaching for the box she had left on the sofa. She offered it to him. "I brought you something."

Draco took the box and opened it avidly. When he saw what was inside he froze, staring blankly at it for a moment before looking at Hermione and smiling. "Steal it back from Potter, did you?"

Hermione shook her head. "Of course not. Though, I did try. But, in the end, he gave it to me."

"He doesn't mind keeping it out of that museum?"

"I don't think he ever cared about that," said Hermione, pulling the wand out of the box and replacing it with the other one in Draco's pocket. After closing his secondhand wand in the box, Draco leaned in and kissed her again.

"Draco!" his mother called, running into the room in a frantic state.

"Mother!" he said, taking several steps away from Hermione. She frowned. That definitely hurt a little.

Narcissa didn't seem to notice. "There's a problem with your father! Please come immediately!"

Draco was paralyzed for a moment before turning to Hermione and saying, "Wait here."

He followed his mother, leaving Hermione alone in the room holding her demons. When they were gone she took a good look around, her eyes stopping as she came across the spot where it had all happened. She leaned down and touched it. Everything came flooding back to her. The fear, the pain, the suffering, knowing that if she was not strong she wouldn't be the only one to lose her life, Harry and Ron would lose theirs too. Even now she could almost hear Ron's screams for her echoing from the cellar, like they were still haunting this place.

Hermione stood up and walked over to the fancy, marble mantelpiece, running her fingers along it. She looked up and saw herself in the gilded mirror, trying to put on her bravest face for Draco. But then she looked beyond her reflection to something directly behind it. A shadowy figure slowly creeping up on her.

She whipped around and immediately met the eyes of Lucius Malfoy. He was thinner than she remembered, his hair falling in dirty tangles at his shoulders. The whites of his eyes were horribly blood-shot and the dark circles around them were so intense he might as well have been beaten.

"M-Mr. Malfoy. What are you doing out of bed?" she asked in a shaky voice.

Lucius stared vacantly for a moment before there was a flicker of recognition. "_Mudblood_," he said in a deep, husky voice.

As much as Hermione wanted to correct him, she knew this wasn't the time. "Mr. Malfoy, you really should be getting back to bed. Your wife and son are very worried -"

When she took a step forward to help him, Lucius lifted the cane he held and pointed it at her.

Hermione stopped walking. "Mr. Malfoy, please, just put that down and -"

"_Avada Kedavra_!"

Hermione felt her heart jolt to a stop as Lucius continued to point his cane at her, glaring fiercely as he waited for her to keel over. She no longer saw herself being tortured on the floor, or heard Ron screaming for her from the cellar. All she saw was Lucius standing there, wanting to see her blood spilt and all she heard was the earthshattering ticking of a clock.

_Tick tock. Tick tock_.

This was the new sound that would haunt her dreams.


	34. Chapter 34

**A/N: Short chapter, but an important one.**

**I wasn't 100% sure how I wanted this chapter to go and did several different versions. This is the one I decided one. I hope you enjoy!**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

_Tick tock. Tick tock_.

There was a loud thump that caused Hermione to fall out of her daze and start breathing again. She looked over to see Draco standing in the doorway, the box she had given him broken at his feet.

"What are you doing?" he asked Lucius, whose attention was still fixed on Hermione. "WHAT THE BLOODY HELL ARE YOU DOING?" Draco marched into the room, using his wand to shoot the cane out of his father's hands.

"I-I don't understand. Why didn't it work, why didn't it work?" said Lucius, putting both hands on his head and rocking back and forth. "She must die. The Mudblood _must_ die!"

"You bloody fool!" shouted Draco, who was now standing protectively in front of a petrified Hermione, still aiming his wand at his father.

"Draco, what is the meaning of this?" asked Narcissa, running into the room.

"He tried to use the Killing Curse on Hermione!"

"She must die! The Mudblood must die, Narcissa!"

"Draco … i-it's fine. I-I'm fine," said Hermione unconvincingly.

"No! It is not fine, Hermione! If I hadn't taken his wand you'd be dead! _That_ _is NOT fine_!"

"You took my wand?" asked Lucius, looking hopefully at his son. "Y-you mean I haven't lost it? I haven't lost my magic?"

"Of course not, darling," said Narcissa, carefully leading her husband to his armchair and sitting him down.

"What are you even doing in here? How did you get all this way from your room?" demanded Draco, still pointing his wand at his father. "You shouldn't even be moving right now! You were practically a vegetable this morning!"

"Do not question miracles, Draco," said Narcissa, putting her hand on her son's wand. "Please lower that now. We both know you're not going to hurt your father."

"He tried to _kill_ Hermione! Why does that not even matter to you?"

"She said she's fine. Now stop being dramatic and help me fetch some food for your father. I, for one, am going to take advantage of this miracle."

Draco snarled at her before grabbing Hermione's hand, and pulling her along with him while he followed his mother. He wasn't letting her out of his sight again.

The chandelier started to rattle as the lights flickered. "They're coming," Lucius said cryptically.

Hermione turned around just before the doorway and looked back at him. A cold air shot through the room. Hermione whipped back towards Draco. She and he locked eyes for a split second before the door slammed shut, forcing them to break their handhold.

"HERMIONE!" she heard him shout from the other side.

Still staring at the door, she reached for her wand, but before she could get her hand in her pocket Lucius came up behind her and grabbed it, only now he didn't point it at her. His aim was focused on the entrance to the cellar.

"The Dark Lord has returned! He cannot have me! He cannot have my family!"

Hermione clenched her fists. She was done being formal. "Lucius!" she shouted over his incoherent babbling. "V-Voldemort is dead! Harry Potter killed him three years ago!"

"_Do not_ use the Dark Lord's name so freely, Mudblood! He is alive! He sends Death Eaters to my room every night to torture me! He wants to destroy me for betraying him! He wants to take my family from me!"

"No! You're wrong!" An icy chill ran down her spine. All air seemed to suck out of the room as the light vanished, leaving them standing in a dark abyss. Two shadowy figures wearing cloaks slightly denser than the dark of the room emerged from the cellar, one significantly smaller than the other. "What the …"

"They're here! Can't you see their dark cloaks? It's the Death Eaters! They've come for me!"

"No," said Hermione, breathing heavily. "Not Death Eaters. Dementor's."

Lucius shook his head frantically. "No! No, they can't be! They speak to me! They told me you were here! They told me to kill the Mudblood! I must obey! I must obey or they will kill me! I refuse to be nothing! I refuse to die!" Lucius pointed Hermione's own wand at her, his hand shaking from his weak state. He hesitated long enough for her to dodge behind the closest sofa. "_Avada Kedavra_!" The curse hit her hiding place and blasted its arm to dust.

"HERMIONE! PLEASE, FATHER, DON'T HURT HER!" echoed Draco's voice from behind the door.

"Lucius, don't!" Hermione shouted at him, the Dementor's creeping dangerously closer. If they wanted their souls they could take them in a heartbeat but, somehow, she got the feeling it wasn't about that. "Please, just give me my wand and I will make them go away! My Patronus is strong, it can stop them!"

"No! They will always come back! They will never stop coming back!"

"_Kill herrrr. Kill the Mudblood_," ordered a hoarse, rattling voice that sent chills down Hermione's spine. She began scanning the room, but her eyes weren't entirely focused to the dark yet. Where had it come from?

"They're doing it again! They're _telling_ me to _kill_ you! If you die it will stop!"

"It won't stop!" shouted Hermione, impulsively jumping to her feet and holding her hands up in surrender. "Please, Lucius, give me my wand and I will make them go away."

"They'll come back!" he repeated, pointing her wand more forcefully.

"No, no they won't," she said. "I will make sure they _never_ come back. But, first, we have to get rid of them. They're sucking the life out of you. Can't you see that?"

Lucius threw his head back and laughed. "They're Death Eaters my dear, not Dementor's. Are you mad?" His eyes became large and buggish as he said this, while his lips curved into a wide, cruel smile. If anyone was mad in this room it definitely wasn't her.

"HERMIONE! HERMIONE, HOLD ON!" Draco continued to shout while still trying to bang down the door.

"Who is my son calling for?"

Hermione's brows furrowed. "ME, YOU IDIOT!" Was she really so insignificant that he couldn't even remember her name?

She lunged for Lucius, knocking him to the floor. The wand flew out of his hands and across the room. She made a break for it but, before she could get her hands on it, the miniature Dementor glided past her and kicked it under a sofa.

"What the hell?" Since when did Dementor's have feet to kick with? Before she had a chance to go after it, Lucius let out an earthshattering scream. She whipped around just in time to see the other Dementor reach its hideous, scabbed hand out and grab him.

On instinct, Hermione grabbed the first thing she could get her hands on, which turned out to be Lucius's cane, and started lashing at the Dementor. It dropped him but let out an eerie hiss in her direction. She took several steps back.

Lucius scrambled to his feet, suddenly seeming very aware of the situation. "Dementor's!" he screamed, making a dash for the sofa the wand had gone under.

Hermione went for it too. If the Dementor's wanted to take their lives so badly they could definitely have done it already but, for some reason, they were playing with their food. And, from what she understood, they'd been playing with Lucius for a while. Probably for years, which would explain his lackluster life.

Lucius got to the wand first. Once he had it in his hand, the rattling voice spoke again. "_Kill herrr. Kill the Mudblood or DIE_!"

Lucius looked torn. He had definitely come back to his senses - at least to an extent - but he still didn't know what he was supposed to do. He slowly lifted his wand and aimed it back at Hermione.

"HERMIONE, PLEASE ANSWER ME!" pleaded Draco from behind the door. She wished she could, but this was not the time.

"Lucius, don't! This is not a Death Eater giving you orders! You know that!"

"It's you or me and I choose you! _Avada_ - Oomph!"

The Dementor Hermione had pissed off shot past Lucius and knocked him to the ground. It was coming straight for Hermione. She tried to make a run for it, but even a room as large as this one only had so many places you could go. Draco kept screaming for her to hang on but she wasn't sure if she could do that for much longer. She ducked and the thing swooped over her head.

She began checking doors. There were several of them; at least one had to open. And then … one did. Unfortunately, it was a supply closet.

Tears started forming in her eyes as she realized how close to death she truly was. How could it end like this? In the same place she had fought so hard to survive in only three years earlier. And Draco … the two of them barely had a chance to start anything, and now it was going to end. He already had so much guilt clouding his heart, he didn't need this too.

"HERMIONE!" It was his most devastating scream yet.

Hermione wiped her tears away. If she was going to die she was going to be brave about it. She was just about to turn around and accept her fate when she caught sight of something long and thin. Sitting among all of the miscellaneous supplies that were stashed away in this closet was a Muggle mop. There was no way she could ever be that lucky.

Hermione quickly grabbed the mop and took off the top, holding it upside down until something fell out. Lucius Malfoy's wand. Thank Draco - or most likely Ruskle - for unpacking so efficiently!

She swung around with every intention of summoning her Patronus, but Lucius was standing only a few feet away. The two of them locked eyes for a moment, his eyebrows furrowing as he lifted her wand.

"_Avada Kedavra_!" he shouted.

"_Expelliarmus_!" Hermione shouted at the same time. It was instinctual, but if it worked against You-Know-Who there was no reason it shouldn't work against Lucius, though the circumstances were very different.

The two of them were left in a deadlock. Neither of them understood why, but then Hermione looked at the wand she was holding and it all clicked. Lucius's wand was still loyal to him, and her wand was still loyal to her. Neither one was willing to attack its master.

If they held on like this for much longer their spells would backfire and Lucius would be hit with his own killing curse. He seemed to realize this too, and they ended up pulling out of their spells at the same time, the force so strong that both were thrown off their feet. Hermione hit her head hard on the stone floor. Through blurry eyes she caught sight of the small Dementor taking the wand that had landed beside her. She grabbed at it before it could get away and pulled off its cloak, revealing a tiny house-elf with large, wide eyes.

"R-Ruskle?" she said in disbelief, the world growing hazy around her. "Why?"

"I need to take care of my family," was all the elf said before disappearing across the room.

Trying to focus her eyes and find the elf, Hermione came across Lucius, who was clumsily climbing to his feet. The real Dementor was closing in behind him. "Lucius!" she called as it knocked him to the ground again, causing the wand to tumble out of his hand.

It landed only a few feet from Hermione and she used her elbows to crawl towards it, trying hard to fight off the darkness that kept trying to overcome her. She reached it and used a nearby table to climb to her feet. The Dementor had Lucius by the neck. Its hood was pulled back as it used the gaping hole where a mouth should be to suck away what little life was left in him.

"_Expecto Patronum_!" she shouted, but it was of little use in her current state, and all she managed to conjure was a small vapor of light only strong enough to repel the Dementor for a few seconds.

The Dementor dropped Lucius and again set its sights on Hermione. It swooped over to her, knocking her back off her feet. Her head hit the hard stone again. This time the shadow clouding her eyes was so strong she could not fight it. Everything began to fade as the Dementor put its scabbed hand around her neck and started giving her its eternal kiss.

"HERMIONE!" she heard again, Draco's lush voice echoing in her ears. "FATHER! FATHER, IF YOU CAN HEAR ME PLEASE DON'T HURT HER! I BEG OF YOU! DON'T HURT HERMIONE!"

Lucius heard his son calling but he wasn't sure what to make of it. He wanted him to spare the Mudblood? But why?

His house-elf peeked out from behind his armchair. Without a second thought, Lucius darted for the creature and grabbed it by the neck. He lifted it off the ground and took his wand from its hand. "_Why _have you done this? You let these creatures into my home! You let them suck all of the happiness out of me! WHY?"

"Ruskle did not let them in! The dark ones came on their own," choked the house-elf, "but Ruskle must do what is best for the family. The Master has brought _shame_ to them. Only the Young Master can repair the family name now."

"And the girl!" shouted Lucius, pointing at where Hermione still lay, the victim of a soul-sucking fiend. "Why did you _order_ me to kill the Mudblood?"

"Young Master has worked so hard to mend his father's mistakes! Ruskle cannot sit back and let everything be destroyed by his love for a _Mudblood_! This is for Ruskle's family!"

"_My_ family! Not yours!" shouted Lucius, but the house-elf didn't even hear him.

"The Mudblood _must _die!" he continued. "And the Master must be put away for doing it!"

"You manipulative little bastard!" Lucius tossed the house-elf aside and tried to cast a Patronus in Hermione's direction, but there had been no happiness inside of him for a long time and he wasn't able to move the Dementor an inch.

Turning his sights back on the house-elf, he held out his wand and shouted, "_Stupefy_!" as it attempted to flee. The elf went stiff, falling to the ground the same way a board would.

Lucius grabbed the elf and marched over to the Dementor, tossing it between the dark creature and the Mudblood. Even though the soul had changed the Dementor did not stop sucking, and it moved its hand from Hermione's neck to Ruskle's. Lucius was able to pull her out of harm's way. For now.

"Wake up!" he shouted, slapping her face. Her eyes fluttered but they did not open. "Do you hear me, Mudblood? Wake up or we both perish! I cannot cast a Patronus! There is no happiness left in me! WAKE UP!"

Lucius began to shake her, crying as he did so. A horrible chill overtook him. He looked over at the entrance to the cellar and noticed several black sheets, denser than the dark of night floating towards them. More Dementor's.

"How many of you have been stealing my life?"

Lucius did not struggle as one of the Dementor's grabbed him by the neck, its hood falling back as it began to take the last remnants of his life. Another one grabbed the girl. The end would come quickly for her. If she was lucky she would die from her head wound soon after entering her vegetative state.

The Dementor giving Ruskle its eternal kiss was not used to handling a creature so small. It accidentally crushed his neck while holding him, killing him instantly. The spell he had cast on the doors immediately released.

Draco barged into the room, his mother just behind him. He took one look at the Dementor's hovering over Hermione and his father and shouted, "_EXPECTO PATRONUM_!"

A bright, white light engulfed the room in the form of a large, translucent dragon. When the light appeared Hermione tried to open her eyes, barely making out the new shape of Draco's extraordinary Patronus.

The Dementor's recoiled, disappearing into the cellar they had come from. Narcissa chased after them, using several charms to lock them inside.

"HERMIONE!" Draco cried, running to her side and cradling her head in his lap. "Hermione, I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! Please stay with me! I love you! Do you hear me? I LOVE YOU!"

Hermione's lips felt frozen as she tried to speak. "D-Draco … I …"

"Please just hang on! Please! I _need_ you!"

"Draco, I … I heard you …"

"What?" he asked, tears falling from his eyes and onto Hermione's cheeks.

"I-I heard you … calling for me …"

"Hermione please!"

Hermione's eyes stopped fluttering, her mouth falling completely still as her world was overtaken by the dark abyss. And the last thing she heard was the resonating sound of Draco screaming her name.


	35. Chapter 35

**A/N: Don't worry, no cliffhangers this time ;-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Draco sat on the sofa, his hands clasped at his knees and his head hung low while several Aurors dealt with the Dementors in the cellar. Some Healers from St. Mungo's were checking the health of his babbling father - who was blaming everything on the dead house-elf - while his mother talked to the Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, who kept glancing sideways at him with a disappointed look.

"Narcissa! Narcissa, what are they doing to me? NO!" _Crash_!

His mother left Kingsley to go and calm down his father while the Healer's tried to sedate him. They had already decided that he would be going to St. Mungo's with them before this night was over.

Once Narcissa was gone Kingsley strutted over to Draco and said, "Well, he's certainly made a mess of things, hasn't he?"

Draco didn't answer. He just kept staring at the same spot of blood on the floor no one had thought to clean, wondering if it was Hermione's.

Kingsley looked down at him and sighed. "So why is it you never told me your father had lost his head? We've certainly spent enough time together these last couple of years that you'd think something like this would come up. Why did you never mention it?"

"I didn't think he was dangerous," said Draco under his breath.

"I'M NOT CRAZY! It was the house-elf! The house-elf was behind it all!"

Draco closed his eyes and breathed heavily. "That's not true. I knew he was dangerous. He used to get into these horrible rages and take it out on our house-elf. He was terrified of my father so I let him spend a lot of the summer with me. If I'd have known it would come to this I would've just given him clothes and been done with it." Just one more victim of the carelessness of Draco Malfoy.

Several '_Pop's!_' sounded in the room. One of the first things Kingsley had done upon arrival was remove the charms blocking apparition into and out of Malfoy Manor. "Looks like they called in reinforcements. Must be pretty bad down there if they even need the help of Auror's in training."

Draco froze. He knew two particular Auror's in training who would not be happy to see him right now. He looked over and immediately caught sight of one of them. Luckily, it was the one he was slightly less afraid of.

Harry locked eyes with Draco - who stood up - marched right over to him and punched him in the face. "How could you let her come here?" he screamed, swinging at him again. "Do you have any idea what she's been through? How hard she worked to forget about this place? HOW COULD YOU LET THIS HAPPEN?"

"I'm sorry!" cried Draco, not putting up any defenses as Harry kept going at him. "I didn't know this would happen! I never wanted her to get hurt! I'm sorry! I'm sorry …" Draco fell to his knees and cried into his hands. Harry continued to pound on him while Kingsley tried to grab his arms and hold him back.

"Stop it! Stop attacking my son!" screamed Narcissa, running across the room and throwing herself protectively over Draco. "Do not touch him!"

"Do not shield me, Mother! He is only giving me what I deserve!" Draco moved out of her clutches and climbed back to his feet. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his wand. Holding it out to Harry, he said, "Take it. I don't want it."

Harry looked at the wand before narrowing his eyes at Draco. "Hermione wanted you to have that wand, Malfoy. I'm not going to go against her wishes and -"

"I SAID TAKE IT!"

Harry stared at Draco, his mouth agape as he tried to assess the other wizard's intentions. Eventually, something in Draco's pleading eyes made him give in and take the wand from him.

"Mr. Malfoy."

Draco turned around to see an old Healer standing just behind him.

"She's awake."

His heart finally started beating again.

"And she's asking for you."

Draco took off running for the guestroom they had put Hermione in once the Healers had arrived. Before they got there he had been afraid to move her. She had seemed so fragile and the last thing he wanted to do was break her even more than she already was.

When he got there he hesitated before opening the door. What if she was angry with him? What if she never wanted to see him again? It was a risk he would just have to take. He had to go in there. He needed to see she was all right, not just hear it.

Draco took several deep breaths and opened the door. Hermione was sitting up in the bed with a bandage wrapped around her head. The Healer in the room was force-feeding her some sort of potion that, by the look on her face, did not taste very good.

"Oh, that really is horrible," said Hermione, cringing. "What did you say was in it again?"

"You can ask all you want, I'm not telling you what's in it, Miss."

"Because I'll never want to drink it again?"

"Exactly," smiled the Healer.

Draco cleared his throat. Both witches looked at him. Hermione's eyes lit up. "Draco," she said, carefully looking him over. "What happened to your eye?"

Draco reached up and touched it. Yep, it definitely hurt. Potter must have gotten him pretty good. "Are you really in any condition to be asking about _my_ injuries?"

The Healer chuckled before saying, "I'll leave the two of you alone." She exited, smiling at Draco as she did so.

When she was gone Draco walked over to the bed and sat on the edge. "How are you feeling?" he asked, unable to look her in the eye.

Hermione grabbed his chin and made him face her. "Draco, I'm fine. Really. Please don't blame yourself for this." While holding him still, she took out her wand and quickly healed his eye.

"If it wasn't for me you never would have come here."

"And if I hadn't come here your father might be dead, making you and your mother the next victims of the Dementor's in the cellar. Everything happens for a reason, Draco."

"My father should be dead after what he did to you. If I had it my way they'd lock him up in Azkaban and throw away the key. Ow!"

Hermione pinched him hard and did not let go. "You take that back right now, Draco Malfoy, or I swear I will hurt you worse!"

"He tried to kill you, Hermione! Why are you defending him?" asked Draco, attempting to pull her off of him.

Hermione released her grip and sighed. "I'm a little vague on the details, seeing as I sort of blacked out and all, but I seem to have a faint memory of your father saving my life," she said. "Granted, it was after he shot numerous Killing Curses at me, but most of those were back when he was still acting a bit mental."

"How did he save you?" Draco asked curiously.

"I don't know. I didn't see. But I felt him pulling me away from the Dementor that was trying to kiss me … and then I think he slapped me. My cheek _is_ a bit sore. He was probably trying to wake me up. Did they capture Ruskle?"

Draco blinked. "Uhh … what?"

"You know … _Ruskle_. Your house-elf who's been following us around all summer. He dressed up like a Dementor - or a Death Eater; it got a little confusing there for a minute - Anyway, he put on this disguise and ordered your father to kill me. Didn't Lucius tell you this?"

Draco gulped. "He did. But we all just thought he was talking nonsense."

"Well, what about Ruskle? If you asked him surely he would tell you -"

"Ruskle's dead, Hermione. One of the Dementor's crushed his throat."

"Oh," said Hermione, her eyes suddenly dimming. "Poor thing. At least it's better than receiving the Dementor's kiss."

Draco chuckled hollowly. "How do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Feel sorry for someone who tried to kill you? You should be furious right now."

Hermione's face twisted. "Don't think I don't see the irony in a house-elf trying to kill me after all of the fighting I've done for their rights over the years. But how can I hate someone for doing what they have been taught since birth? I'm sure Ruskle thought killing me was best for your family. He didn't do it for his own selfish gains."

"And now I officially feel worse," said Draco, staring down at the floor.

"Please don't, Draco," said Hermione, putting her head on his shoulder. "I repeat; none of this is your fault."

Draco leaned his head against hers. The two of them wrapped their arms around each other and held on tight, never wanting to let the other go.

"So tell me something," said Hermione, burrowing herself into his chest, "was it my imagination or did I see a dragon in your drawing room?"

Draco laughed loudly. He had almost forgotten about that. "It seems my Patronus has taken on a new form."

"One that won't attack my otter?" Hermione smiled.

"Well, I can't be sure, but I was definitely thinking about you when I conjured it, so I'd say it's probably a safe bet."

"Dragons are so much better than snakes. I think you'll be very happy with your new Patronus."

"Let's hope I never have to use it again … _Ever_."

Draco leaned in and kissed her lips gently. She still seemed a little shaky so he didn't want to put too much into it, even though he was dying to feel her mouth pressed firmly against his.

"Do you remember anything else?" asked Draco, curious to know if Hermione had heard what he said to her. It took a horrible turn of events but Draco had finally found the courage to tell her he loved her. It would be a shame if she missed it.

"Not really. After I hit my head it's all a bit fuzzy. Is there something else I _should_ remember?" she asked, giving him a sly smile.

Draco narrowed his eyes at her. "Enough with the games, Granger. I know you heard me."

"Heard what?" she asked innocently. "Like I said, it was all a bit fuzzy. Maybe you should tell me again."

"No, that's alright. If you don't remember, you don't remember. It wasn't important."

"Draco!"

Draco chuckled before stroking her cheek and giving her another gentle kiss. When he pulled away he looked into her eyes and said, "I love you, Hermione."

Tears filled Hermione's eyes as she tried to smile. It was great to finally hear those words, but the price she almost paid for them was a bit high.

"It's okay. You don't have to put on a brave face for me. If you need to cry, please, just do it."

And so she did. Hermione let it all out and wept heavily while Draco held her against him, soaking the shirt she clung to. He stroked her hair and repeatedly whispered into her ear, "It's alright. You're safe now. I've got you."

"Draco …"

"Yeah?"

"Why were there Dementor's in your cellar?" she asked between sobs.

Draco sighed. "Kingsley told us since they were kicked out of Azkaban they've been taking refuge in the homes of wizards and witches released from there, keeping them as their prisoners. This isn't the first time this has happened."

"You'd think that was something they might want to warn people about."

"Easier said than done, Ms. Granger." They both looked over to see Kingsley standing in the doorway with one of the Auror's right behind him. "It isn't exactly a common occurrence, if you take into account how many people have been released from Azkaban recently. We didn't see a need to spread panic when we thought family members would surely inform us when their loved ones started acting funny."

Draco looked shamefully to the ground. It was safe to say that he was no longer on Kingsley's favorite's list.

"Mr. Malfoy, if you will excuse us for a moment, we need to speak with Ms. Granger about what happened."

Draco moved to leave but Hermione reached out and grabbed his sleeve. "Can't he stay?" she asked Kingsley with pleading eyes.

"I'm afraid not. We need to get an accurate account of the events that took place here without any outside influence."

Hermione winced but Draco grabbed her hand and said, "It's alright, Mione. It won't take long, and I'll wait right outside so I can come back in the moment you're done."

Hermione hesitated, but eventually nodded. Before leaving, Draco leaned down and gave her a kiss on the forehead. He was not blind to the way the Auror grimaced when he did this. He must have been one of Weasel's friends.

Out in the hallway Draco immediately noticed Harry sitting on the windowsill across from Hermione's door. Rather than go and sit next to him, he took two steps to the right and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms casually in front of his chest.

The two wizards avoided eyes for several minutes before Harry asked, "Did you mean what you said in there?"

"About waiting out here? Every word."

"Don't be a prick. You _know_ what I mean."

Of course he did. "Spy much?"

"I wasn't spying! I came to check on my friend who was almost _killed_! Just tell me if what you said was true."

"I said a lot of things. You will have to be more precise."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Oh, never mind. I'm not going to play your games, Malfoy."

Draco sighed. Unfortunately, if he wanted Hermione in his life he was going to have to start being decent to Potter. Might as well start now. "I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it. Not to her, anyway."

"So … it's true then. You," Harry gulped, "love her."

"Yes."

"And she … loves you. She already told me she does."

"Then I guess that must be true too."

"Oh Merlin, I think I'm going to be sick."

"Well, no need to be _rude_ about it."

Harry looked at Draco for a long moment with a nauseating expression on his face before pulling something out of his pocket and holding it up. "Why did you give this back to me, Malfoy?"

Draco stared at his wand and said, "I told you, I don't want it."

"But why? It's not like it had anything to do with what happened here."

"It's not about tonight, Potter. It's about me and what happened three years ago."

Harry looked at him expectantly, but Draco had little desire to continue. It wasn't until he realized Harry wasn't going to go away that he gave in.

"When I saw Hermione lying there tonight my mind immediately flashed back to when my aunt tortured her. I held that very wand in my hand the entire time but did nothing to help her. I know I didn't care for her back then, but that doesn't mean it didn't affect me. I want nothing to do with that cowardly boy anymore and _that wand_ was a part of him," he said, pointing at it sternly. "So, therefore, no, Potter, I do not want it back. Go ahead and give it to that museum you promised it to. At least that way the last thing that wand will ever do is save Hermione, like it should have done three years ago."

Harry looked at the wand and frowned. "Well … if that's true then I think you should follow me." He stood up and started walking out of the hallway. Draco stared after him for a second before looking back at the door. Harry turned around. "Don't worry. They'll be a while. I'll have you back before there's any chance of you breaking your promise to Hermione."

Draco still looked hesitant but sucked it up and followed Harry out of the hall. They passed by the drawing room and he caught a quick glimpse of his mother sitting on the sofa with his father's head lying stiffly in her lap, his eyes wide and vacant. Apparently, they had succeeded in sedating him.

His mother looked over just in time to see him walking with Harry. She moved to follow but he shook his head. She settled back in her seat but did not take her eyes off of the place Draco just was.

Harry led Draco out of Malfoy Manor and into the courtyards. Several albino peacocks were fluttering about the white roses, but Harry kept walking until they were in a secluded corner in the hedges.

"Brought me out here to murder me, have you Potter? I suppose if it was anyone I'm glad it's you. An appropriate end to a decade long rivalry."

Harry rolled his eyes. "I'm not going to murder you, Malfoy, as tempting as that might be. But _you_ are going to murder this." He held up Draco's old wand.

"Umm … I don't exactly follow you."

Putting the wand in Draco's hand, Harry said, "You say you don't want to be that boy you once were. So prove it. Destroy your old wand and separate yourself from him for good. And don't just break it. Use my wand to blow it to dust."

Draco hesitantly took Harry's wand from him. Staring down at both wands in his hands, he asked, "What about the museum? Won't they be upset?"

"They'll make do."

"And _why_ did we have to come all the way over here to do this?"

Harry shrugged. "I didn't want you to accidentally hit a peacock."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Oh Potty, still so humble. Alright, step back then."

Harry did as he was told.

Draco braced himself. He looked at his first wand one last time, sighing as he clutched it tightly. Before he had a chance to talk himself out of it Draco tossed his wand into the air and used a blasting charm to - as Harry said - blow it to dust.

Once the dust settled, Draco stared down at what little remained of his wand and frowned. "Satisfied, Potter?"

"This was never about _me_ being satisfied, Malfoy. How do _you_ feel?"

"Slightly empty, but not in a bad way."

"That's good. I think."

"I suppose it's back to the hand-me-down wand again. At least for the next two weeks." Draco turned away from the ashes and gave Harry his wand back. "Thanks for letting me use that. Feels pretty good. Guess you and I always had similar styles."

"Yeah … guess we're not really that different. Talent wise, anyway." The two wizards looked at each other in awkward silence, perhaps experiencing their first bit of understanding for one another. "You should get back now. Hermione will need you there when Kingsley is finished."

"Yeah … uhh … thanks," said Draco before heading inside. Harry stayed outside a little longer, unsure of how he was supposed to feel right now. His best friend had fallen for his worst enemy - well, his worst _alive_ enemy, anyway. Only, he really didn't seem that bad. Granted, he and Draco would never be friends. Still, there were worse wizards out there.

XXX

Draco sat on the bed while Hermione's head twitched in his lap. He stroked her hair in an attempt to calm her but it wasn't working. Leaning down, he whispered, "Are you awake?"

She nodded. "The clock won't stop ticking."

Draco looked over at the old clock on the nightstand. _Tick tock_. _Tick tock_. Hermione shuddered in his arms.

Placing her head very carefully on the bed, Draco got up and took the clock out of the room. He went all the way down the hall and ended up throwing it through a random door, even going as far as taking his father's old pocket watch out of his pocket and tossing it in after the clock. He wasn't sure if he would ever be able to forgive his father for this.

When Draco got back to the room Hermione was already asleep. He quietly slipped back on the bed. Feeling his presence, Hermione instinctually moved her head so it was once again on his lap. Draco leaned down and kissed her forehead.

The Aurors and Healers were making quite a ruckus outside so Draco put a charm around the room to keep the noise out, using the wand he had picked back up on his way in - the broken box holding it had been kicked into a corner during all of the commotion. Now that Hermione was finally asleep he wasn't going to let anything wake her.

Sometime later - how much later Draco didn't know since all clocks had been removed - the door to the room opened and his mother walked in carrying a tray with a tea kettle and two teacups.

"I thought you might like some tea," she said, setting the tray down where the clock should have been.

"_You_ made tea?"

"Well, I figured since we're down a house-elf - _again_ - that someone had to do it. I've made tea before, you know," she said, pouring a cup and handing it to him.

"And how many years ago was that?" he asked, taking the cup from her. He took a sip and did well to hide his true reaction to the horrid taste. When she wasn't looking he slipped his wand out and warmed the liquid, as well as removed all of the spare tea leaves. A few here and there were fine, but his cup was overrun with them.

Without pouring herself a cup, Narcissa took a seat in the armchair beside the bed. After staring pensively for a moment at the girl in her sons lap, she sighed and said, "They're taking your father to St. Mungo's as soon as they are done dealing with the Dementors. They plan to treat him just as they would someone who has just been released from Azkaban … after years of turmoil, of course."

"It's about time," said Draco, putting down his teacup and running his fingers along Hermione's bandage and through her hair. "He should have gone there years ago."

"Now, Draco, don't be like that. We were doing what was best for this family -"

"She could have died, mother," said Draco through clenched teeth. The only thing stopping him from screaming right now was his determination not to wake Hermione. Once they got a moment alone he planned to tell his mother exactly how he felt, and in the proper tone.

"But she didn't."

Draco stared coldly at her. "If he had just been sent to St. Mungo's years ago none of this would have happened. Father would have been back to his old self long ago, all of the work I've done to repair our family name wouldn't have been for nothing, since we've obviously lost _all_ respect from Kingsley tonight, and Hermione wouldn't have had to go through something so horrible here. _Again_. Or have you forgotten how your sister tortured her?"

"I never forget, Draco. But I suppose you're right. If we had received help for your father when this all began maybe you wouldn't have gone on this lark of yours."

"And that's where you and I differ. While you see my summer away as the most negative thing to come from all of this, I see it as the only positive." Draco looked down at Hermione longingly before stroking her cheek.

"Draco … no. You can't."

"Can't what?"

"You can't be in love with a Mud -" Draco shot her a sharp look. Narcissa cleared her throat and said, "A Muggle-born. There's a reason the Malfoy's and the Black's continue to marry purebloods. It is because bad things happen to the others we might love."

"Are you threatening her?" asked Draco, tensing in his seat.

"No, of course not," said Narcissa. "I'm not the pureblood chauvinist you seem to think I am. That title is reserved for your father."

"I always figured it was reserved for both of you."

Narcissa sighed. "I suppose you're right. I don't deny that over the years I have developed a sense of superiority, as have you. It's hard not to when you're constantly told to believe it, but I wasn't always this way. Many years ago I was as open-minded as you are now."

"I have a hard time believing that."

Narcissa looked at her son solemnly before saying, "You have always known that I love Herbology, Draco, but I never told you why, or the reason I did not pursue it further."

"You like plants; you became a housewife like all Malfoy women. What more is there to know?"

"How about the fact that the only reason I took an interest in Herbology was because of my crush on a Ravenclaw Muggle-born named Ethan?" Draco's jaw dropped. "For years we took classes together without saying a word to one another. I was completely enthralled by him and his passion for plants, so when he started an Herbology club in our fourth year I joined instantly."

"But … what about Dad?"

"Your father and I were not even on each other's radar back then. He was a bit of a playboy and I was the weird girl obsessed with plants. But Ethan … he was my first love."

"So what happened to him?"

Narcissa sighed heavily before staring at one of the flowers on the bedspread. "My father caught wind of my little romance and … well, he's not here anymore, is he?"

"He killed him?" gulped Draco.

Narcissa shrugged. "I don't know. The summer before our sixth year Ethan disappeared. No one has seen or heard from him since. If he is alive somewhere I'm sure he has absolutely no memory of our world … or me. After that I quit Herbology, but I never stopped loving plants." Narcissa looked away from the fake flower and caught eyes with her son. Giving him a half-smile, she said, "Believe it or not your father was my rebound. I went to him in hopes of forgetting about Ethan and, somewhere along the way, it developed into something real."

Draco felt Hermione's breathing begin to quicken. He began stroking her hair again in an attempt to sooth her. This would be a horrible time for her to wake up.

"I know you think you love her, Draco, but, if you truly did, then you would do what's best for her."

"And what's that?" he asked, his hand tensing when it reached the bandage around her head.

"You would let her go."

Draco's face clenched as he tried to hold himself together. He knew this was what his mother was going to say, but that didn't make it easier, especially since he knew she was right.

Narcissa reached over and placed a comforting hand on top of his. "Maybe there's a chance nothing would ever happen to her, but, somehow, I don't think that is a risk you're willing to take. If you really do love her, I trust you will do the right thing."

There was a knock at the door. They both looked up to see Harry poke his head inside. "Sorry to interrupt, but we're just about to leave. Kingsley thought you both might like to come and say goodbye to Lucius."

"No," said Draco instantly.

Narcissa narrowed her eyes at him. "Like it or not, he is still your father and you are going to say goodbye to him."

"I'm not leaving Hermione here alone."

"I'll stay with her," said Harry, taking a step into the room.

"There, all settled," said Narcissa, getting to her feet.

Draco sighed before carefully placing Hermione's head on a pillow and slipping off of the bed, just missing the single tear trickling down her cheek. The moment he was gone Hermione opened her eyes and cried silently into her pillow. Harry had taken a seat in the chair opposite the direction she was facing so he didn't notice. In fact, he was completely unaware of the harsh reality that had just hit his best friend, and how heartbroken she truly felt.

20


	36. Chapter 36

**A/N: Okay! So according to my calculations there will be maybe 3 or 4 more chapters after this one and then this story will FINALLY be finished! Probably four … Just so you know ;-)**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Hermione was put on bed rest for the next few days. As much as she hated staying at Malfoy Manor, the Healer assigned to her would not let her move somewhere else. "Moving would require apparition, or Floo, or a broomstick and you are in no condition to use any of those things," she said before giving her some more of that awful potion and leaving.

The second morning after everything had happened, Phillip and Sophie stopped by on their way out of town. Mr. Ollivander was sending them to Iceland to get the heartstring of a dragon there.

"Mr. Olleevander promeeses eet ees nothing we can't 'andle. 'E says ze dragon een question is as gentle as Puff!"

"The magic dragon?" asked Hermione, chuckling.

The witches broke into an unfamiliar song while the wizards shared a questionable look. "Muggles certainly have interesting music," said Draco.

"Draco, weell you and Phillipe please go and make us some 'ot chocolate? I zink we can all use a cup before we 'ave to take off."

"Potter leant us his house-elf to help out while Hermione's here. I can just ask him to -"

"No! _You_!" snapped Sophie, pointing both men out of the room.

"But I'm sure he's much better at it than I -"

"Uhh … Draco. Sophie's nostrils are doing that flaring thing they always do when someone's about to get hurt. Best not be us," said Phillip, putting a hand on Draco's shoulder and guiding him towards the door.

Draco looked worriedly at Hermione, who simply smiled at him. "Draco, I'll be fine. You'll only be in the kitchen, and it's not like I can go anywhere. If any Dementors show up I'm sure Sophie will protect me."

"That's not funny," he said gravely.

Hermione sighed. "I know, but I promise you have nothing to worry about. Just go and make some hot chocolate, and Sophie and I will be in these exact same spots when you get back."

Draco finally agreed, but he did not look happy about it. He kept his eyes on Hermione the entire time while Phillip practically carried him out of there, making sure to shut the door behind them.

When they were gone Hermione looked at Sophie and frowned. "Sorry about that. He's been a bit clingy ever since … well, you know."

Sophie pursed her lips and shook her head. "I am steell so mad at myself for letting you come 'ere alone. I 'ad a 'orrible feeling from ze start. I am so sorry, 'Ermione!"

"Please, don't be. I wanted to come alone, remember? Maybe I was just asking for trouble."

"No. You deed not deserve zis. No one should 'ave to go zrough what you deed." Sophie paused and looked back at the closed door. "You look at 'im differently."

Hermione was taken aback. She cast her eyes down to the bedspread, catching sight of the flowers printed on it, which now made her think of Narcissa. "It's not what you think. Despite all of this, my feelings for him have not changed. If anything I love him more than I did before."

"Zen what ees ze problem?"

Hermione sighed, releasing a few tears that had been dancing around in her eyes. She immediately wiped them away. "I overheard him and his mother talking. She wants him to leave me and I think he just might do it."

"_What_? Why?"

"I don't know." Hermione shrugged. "She gave him one of those 'if you care about her you will let her go' speeches. And, as much as I hate to say it, it was pretty convincing. I think he's considering it."

Sophie raised an eyebrow at her. "Uhh, 'Ermione, ze guy does not even want to leave you alone for two meenutes, let alone forever."

"I didn't say he wanted to, but that doesn't mean he wouldn't, if he thought it was the right thing to do."

"So what does all of zis mean exactly? 'Ave you chosen Draco over Ron?" Sophie asked hopefully.

Hermione shrugged. "I thought I had. But …"

"But what?"

Hermione looked solemnly into Sophie's eyes. "But then his father tried to kill me." She gulped, her throat already swelling as she sucked back her tears.

Sophie sighed. "I'm so sorry zis 'appened to you, 'Ermione, but no one ees more sorry zan Draco. 'E loves you. Geeve 'im a chance."

"I haven't decided anything yet, Sophie. Right now … I guess I'm just going to wait and see."

"Well, alright," said Sophie frowning. "Just promise me you weell not push 'im away."

"I promise."

Sophie leaned in and gave Hermione a hug. They were still holding each other when the boys walked back in several minutes later.

"Well, well, well. Don't tell me we missed all the good stuff?"

Sophie grabbed a pillow and tossed it at Phillip. He nearly spilled the hot chocolate he was holding dodging it. They both laughed. He walked over and the two shared a kiss before he handed her a mug.

"Make sure to drink fast, Soph. We gotta get going if we're going to get to Iceland before dark."

Sophie nodded and pulled a Purple Polly Flower out of her pocket, emptying its sap into her drink before chugging it down.

Draco gave Hermione hers and took a seat next to her on the bed. For the next twenty minutes the four of them chatted and laughed like they didn't have a care in the world. It was refreshing for all of them.

When they finally had to say goodbye Sophie and Phillip each gave Hermione a hug and wished her well. Draco wanted to walk them out but decided against it since he didn't want to leave Hermione. She became livid and screamed at him until he agreed to go with them, which he only did to calm her down. Still, he refused to leave her alone and called Kreacher into the room to watch her until he returned.

On their way out they ran into Narcissa in the drawing room. She seemed fairly surprised to see them. "Draco, I did not realize you had company. Who are your friends?"

"Mother, this is Phillip Prior and Sophie Labelle. They have been working with me and Hermione off and on throughout the summer."

"How do you do?" said Narcissa, holding out her hand to Phillip first - who shook it - and then to Sophie.

Sophie stared at it for a split second before crossing her arms and saying, "Oh, you do not want to shake my 'and."

"I'm sorry?" said Narcissa, not quite sure what to make of the witch.

"'Aven't you 'eard? I am a Muggle-born. My 'ands are _feelthy_. You would not want me ruining zat perfect manicure of yours, would you?"

"Uhh, darling, you're not _really_ a Muggle-born. Is that Skeeter woman so good she has you believing the rumors she created about you?"

"Shut eet, Phillipe! Mrs. Malfoy does not know zat!"

Narcissa lowered her hand and narrowed her eyes at Sophie. "How dare you speak to me with such disrespect! And in my own house! I demand you leave at once!"

"Lucky for you, we are already leaving. Come on Phillipe!" said Sophie, pulling him along.

Draco stared after them, dumbfounded for a moment, before looking at his mother and saying, "I have to go and walk them out."

As he followed them towards the exit, his mother shouted at him, "Make sure that 'filthy' girl never comes back here!"

Sophie and Phillip were already outside by the time Draco caught up to them. "What the hell was that, Sophie? You can't just speak to my mother that way!"

"I know. I was out of line and I'm sorry."

"Well …" Draco didn't know where to go from here. He wasn't expecting Sophie to be so apologetic. "Where exactly did that come from?"

"I wear my 'eart on my sleeve, Draco, and _zat_ woman ees not een ze right!"

"What are you talking about?"

"I know you love your mother, but _do not _let 'er manipulate you. You deserve better zan ze life she 'as planned for you."

"Sophie … where is this coming from?"

Sophie sighed. "Nowhere. Just take care of 'Ermione, will you?"

"Of course I will."

She nodded. "Good."

Sophie leaned in and gave Draco a kiss on each cheek. After he and Phillip shook hands, the witch and wizard mounted their brooms and took off for Iceland.

Once they were gone Draco took a moment outside by himself. He didn't understand what Sophie had been talking about. Had Hermione said something to her? Had she heard his mother speaking to him? He hoped to Merlin she hadn't. The last thing Hermione needed right now was to know about the doubts currently circulating in his mind.

When he finally went back inside, Hermione was laughing while Kreacher sat next to her on the bed. He had several papers and magazine cutouts lain about.

"What is all this?" he asked, taking a seat on her other side.

"Kreacher was just showing me some wedding stuff. Apparently, Ginny has asked him to take over as coordinator. She and, uh, her mother did not see eye to eye when it came to her wedding."

"And if you look here, these are the flowers we are getting! Everything is scarlet and gold since they were both Gryffindor's. And these bouquets are for the bridesmaids. You and Luna will have gold while Fleur and Angeline have scarlet. Oh! And this is the cake! Red velvet with buttercream frosting."

"Oh, I love the way you have that part streaming out like that! It looks kind of like phoenix wings. Don't you think, Draco?"

Draco leaned down and took a better look at the picture of the cake. "Yes, it actually does. Was that your intention?" he asked the house-elf.

Kreacher beamed at him. "Yes it was! I thought it would be appropriate with the color scheme."

"I think it's absolutely perfect. Harry and Ginny are going to love it," said Hermione, patting him on the shoulder.

Kreacher spent over an hour in the room with them, explaining every little detail of the wedding. By the end of it all Draco and Hermione felt like they had already attended.

"I suddenly have a very strong hankering for some red velvet cake," said Draco while his stomach growled at the thought.

"I will make some immediately!" said Kreacher enthusiastically. He gathered up his things and immediately apparated out of there.

When he was gone Hermione looked at Draco and smiled. "I think Kreacher is really excited to be here. He was the Black family house-elf, you know."

"Yeah, I remember my mother speaking of him," said Draco, suddenly recalling another bad thing between them. If Hermione was thinking about it too, she did not let on.

With Kreacher gone she took this time to snuggle into Draco, enjoying her last night of bed rest before having to go back to work tomorrow. While she was not looking forward to it, she was at least glad to get out of Malfoy Manor. The two of them lay on the bed, holding each other, until Kreacher showed up with a giant red velvet cake for them some time later.

XXX

The two of them woke up the next morning to a knock on the bedroom door. Draco groaned before squeezing Hermione close. When the knock came again he reluctantly let her go, but not before giving her a kiss.

Draco got out of bad and pulled some pants on over his boxers, but did not bother with a shirt. He answered the door just as the person was knocking for a third time. The Healer who had been tending to Hermione since the accident - if you could actually call it that - was standing on the other side.

"Good morning," she said brightly. He hadn't noticed it before, but now that he had a moment to actually look at her he could have sworn he'd seen her somewhere before. "I've come to check on the patient. Mind if I come in?"

Draco looked back at Hermione who nodded as she sat up in the bed. He opened the door wider and let the Healer in.

"How are you feeling today?" she asked as she approached Hermione, giving a sly glance at Draco's bare chest.

"Much better, thank you. And eager to get out of this bed."

"Well, let's see how your head is first, then we can make that decision."

Draco sat in a chair and watched as the Healer took off Hermione's bandages. He had been helping her change them twice a day and they looked pretty much healed, but he secretly hoped they weren't. As long as Hermione was bed ridden she couldn't be hurt. That was all he cared about.

"Everything looks good!"

Draco grumbled to himself.

"There is still a small bump here, but it's nothing I can't fix." She took out her wand and flicked it at the wound. "Better?"

"Yes, much," said Hermione, rubbing the back of her head. "Like it was never even there." She glanced at Draco and the two exchanged an awkward look before turning away from each other.

The Healer darted her eyes between the two, not blind to the tension running through the room. Luckily, a pecking on the window broke the silence.

"I'll get that," said the Healer, moving to the window. "It's probably a get well card or something." She opened it and a familiar looking owl swooped in, dropping a letter in Hermione's lap.

She broke the seal and started reading it immediately. After scanning through it she looked at Draco and said, "Mr. Ollivander wants me to come and work in the wand shop for a couple of days, until _he_ decides I'm well enough to go out on missions again. And he says if you want to come back you can work in the shop with me for now, but he seems to think you're not much use in there." She smirked.

Draco rolled his eyes. "He's still bitter over this incident that happened almost _two_ years ago. He was adding the cores into some newly sculpted wands and I accidentally knocked an entire rack of finished ones on top of them. It took us two days to sort it all out. We had to test each wand to see if it worked or not and there were hundreds of them."

Hermione laughed for the first time in days. "Tell me you at least remember which ones you liked for when you're picking your new wand?"

"Of course I did. My favorite was an Ash wand, twelve and three-quarter inches with a phoenix feather for its core. I plan to test it out again at the end of the summer. See if it still fits."

"Is it still there?"

"Last I checked. We just have to make sure to get back before all the Hogwarts hopefuls," he laughed.

Hermione glanced at the Healer, who was still standing awkwardly by the window. "Is there anything else you needed?" she asked.

"Oh … no, I suppose not. You're good to go, Hermi - umm, Ms. Granger. I'll just be on my way then." She walked to the door. Before leaving she looked back at Draco, smiled and said, "Nice seeing you again."

Once she was gone, Draco turned to Hermione and asked, "Do I know her?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "She was a Slytherin, Draco." He looked at her blankly. "She was at the Leaky Cauldron with the lot of them the other night." Still no light of recognition. "She's the one who told Pansy to sit down."

"I have a vague memory. What was her name?"

Hermione shrugged. "I never asked. I think Daphne called her something to do with books."

It still did not ring a bell to Draco. Oh well.

"Draco … _are_ you coming back with me?"

Draco looked puzzled. "Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, your mom, for one. She's going to be all alone here without even a house-elf to keep her company."

"So? She'll make do. She always does."

"But don't you think -"

"I'm not leaving you, Hermione! Not again!" he shouted, standing up from his chair and walking to the window. He stared out of it, deep in thought.

Hermione climbed out of bed for the first time in several days and went up behind him, hugging her arms around his waist. "Please stop blaming yourself. I can't bear seeing you like this."

"I can't not, Hermione. If it wasn't for me you never would have come here. I still don't know why I let you."

"You didn't _let_ me, Draco. I came on my own accord. All you did was let me in."

"I left you alone in _that_ room. I knew what happened to you there and I did it anyway."

Hermione shook her head against his back. "You couldn't have known what was going to happen in there. None of this was your fault. Please, just let it go."

"I can't!" Draco whipped around and took a step back from Hermione. "How can you even look at me right now? How could you still think you love me? I don't deserve it. I don't deserve you."

Hermione took a step forward and put both of her hands on his cheeks, holding him so he was forced to look her in the eye. "I don't _think_ I still love you, Draco. I know I do. You keep forgetting that you saved my life the other night with the most extraordinary Patronus I have ever seen. And you conjured it thinking of me. Is that not the most definitive form of flattery?"

Draco chuckled. "Most definitive? Couldn't you just be like a normal person and say best or something?"

"Well, I could … but best really doesn't describe the way I feel. You're not the best. You're -"

"The most definitive!" he said mockingly.

Hermione let go of his cheeks and smacked his chest playfully. "How about ultimate. You are the ultimate wizard, Draco Malfoy, and I love you."

"And I love you, Hermione Granger."

Draco lifted his hand and began to stroke her cheek with his thumb while staring longingly into her amber eyes. He leaned in and kissed her. For the first time in days he did not fear he would break her.

When things started to get heated the two moved over to the bed. It was not until Draco started to pull off Hermione's shirt that she stopped him. "Draco … no. Not here. I can't do this _here_."

Draco stopped immediately. He nodded and kissed her forehead. "You're right. Let's get out of here."

Within minutes Hermione and Draco were dressed. He had already repacked his backpack and brought it in here from his own room, since he hadn't slept there once. He put Hermione's pajamas that Kreacher had brought for her inside of it and the two of them left the room hand-in-hand.

On their way out they passed the kitchen, where they heard Draco's mother laughing with someone. They both poked their heads inside and saw her laughing with the Healer over a cup of tea while Kreacher served them omelets.

"My sister is beyond excited about the wedding. The only thing that really has her down is that she just found out theirs is the exact same day as Harry Potter's. So much for being the social event of the season, let alone the day."

"Yes, that is unfortunate. Oh, but it really is a shame Draco and Gregory have not made amends yet. We would both just love to go."

The Healer smiled. "Well, I don't have much pull in the way of guests, but I do have an unused plus one if you would like to come. My date is a groomsman so it's only going to go to waste."

"Or you could just ditch your date and invite my son. I'm sure he'd love -"

"Mother!"

Narcissa turned towards Draco, unfazed. "Oh, good morning, darling. Astoria and I were just catching up on -"

"I really don't care what you were catching up on! Hermione and I are leaving now and I would _appreciate_ it if you would stop trying to 'pimp me out' in front of her!"

"Now, Draco, don't be like that. Let's talk about this."

The two of them continued to argue as they walked into the next room, leaving Hermione and Astoria alone in the kitchen. The two witches stared around the room awkwardly while Kreacher hummed over the stove.

"So … your name is Astoria?" asked Hermione, trying to make casual conversation.

The other witch smiled. "Yes."

"And you're … Daphne's sister?"

"Uhuh."

"I'm sorry I never asked your name before. Everything's been kind of crazy here, you know?"

"It's fine. I didn't take it personally. I actually thought Draco might have already told you my name."

"Oh … umm … we never really talked about it," she lied. The girl didn't need to know he didn't remember her, let alone her name.

"I wasn't going to ask him, by the way. Just so you know."

"Oh! No! It's not … I mean, we're not … uhh, well …" Hermione sighed. "It's complicated."

"I can see that," said Astoria, taking another sip of tea. "So, if I did ask him …"

"I'd have to hex you," Hermione said instinctually.

Astoria smiled. "That's what I thought. That's fine. I'm going with Blaise, anyway."

"Hermione, let's go!" said Draco, marching into the room. Narcissa was nowhere to be found. He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the front door, stopping before the doorway leading into the drawing room. "We can go around," he said, already pulling her back the way they came.

Hermione pulled back. "Draco, no! It's fine. I _want_ to go this way."

Draco looked into the room reluctantly, but when he saw the pleading look in Hermione's eyes he knew he had to agree. They walked into the room together, not stopping until they reached the spot Hermione had been laying when Draco finally got through the door. Kreacher had managed to get all of the blood off the stone, but something about it still stood out. It was like an energy was emitting off of it to remind everyone something bad had happened here.

Hermione looked down at the spot and sighed. "I need you to know that once we walk out the door … I'm never coming back here."

Draco closed his eyes. "I understand. And what about us?"

"Well, we're still figuring that out, aren't we?"

"I suppose we are."

Draco opened his eyes and looked at Hermione, who was also looking at him. He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close while she wrapped hers around his waist. Even in Draco's warm hold, Hermione could not drown out the noise of the ticking clock. The very one she had heard when Lucius first tried to kill her. She needed to get out of here soon.

"Draco, wait!" Narcissa ran into the room. She didn't even seem to notice the way her son had his arms wrapped around the young witch. It was like Hermione wasn't even there. "I know you're angry with me but, please, take this." She held out an old pocket watch.

"Where did you get that?"

"The house-elf found it tossed into one of the spare rooms. I don't know why you put it in there -"

"Hermione couldn't sleep with the ticking," he said quickly.

_Tick tock. Tick tock_. It seemed to be getting louder. Hermione's palms began to sweat.

"Oh," said Narcissa, looking at Hermione for the first time, noticing the way her eyes kept darting to the old clock in the corner. She opened up the back of the pocket watch and stopped it. "All fixed. Now take it."

"I don't want it."

"But it was your fathers."

"I don't care."

_Tick tock. TICK TOCK._

"How can you be so disrespectful?"

"How can _you_ be so disrespectful? Stop trying to manipulate me and let me make my own deci -"

"Draco, please just take the watch so we can get out of here!" shouted Hermione, throwing her hands over her ears.

Draco looked at her worriedly before reaching out and taking the watch from his mother.

"Thank you," said Narcissa, half-glancing at Hermione.

"AHH!" someone screamed from the other room.

They all exchanged nervous looks before running into the hallway they had just come from. Astoria was standing in the middle of it with her wand pointed at the ground.

"What is it?" asked Narcissa frantically.

Astoria looked at all of them curiously. "Oh, sorry. There was a beetle crawling down the hallway. I think it came from the room you were staying in," she said looking at Hermione. "But don't worry. I took care of it." She smiled proudly as a small puff of smoke scattered at her feet.

Hermione and Draco looked at each other with wide eyes. What were the chances Rita Skeeter was trying to find a loophole in the deal she made with Draco and spying on them anyway? They both already knew that it was pretty good. Guess they would find out in a couple of days if she came up as a missing person.

It was funny. Neither of them felt as remorseful as they thought they should.


	37. Chapter 37

**A/N: Getting closer…**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Mr. Ollivander had Hermione and Draco work in his shop for the remainder of the week. Hermione was put back on wand shaping but Draco was given more tedious tasks, like dusting and sweeping.

They stayed at the Leaky Cauldron and were more or less able to get back to their old selves without the coldness of Malfoy Manor lurking around them. Still, neither of them had been in the friskiest of moods since everything had happened. Even Draco had lost his mojo, which, until now, Hermione had thought impossible.

The two of them had been reading the _Daily Prophet_ every day, and while there were no articles talking about Rita Skeeter's possible disappearance, there were no articles written by her either.

On their last day working in the shop, Draco stopped his sweeping to watch Ollivander put a phoenix feather into a newly carved wand. He found it interesting that he used his own wand to do it. It kind of went along with that whole chicken or the egg theory. How was the first wand made without another wand there to create it?

He tried to ask Ollivander this, but the old man would not give him a straight answer. Hermione had stopped her work to listen to them. She was as curious as he was.

"I'm sure they just carved the wand around the core or something," she suggested.

"Or created a little twist off top and stuffed it in there."

Hermione smiled at his moronic, yet plausible, theory. "I suppose that is also a possibility."

"Mr. Malfoy, come here please," said Ollivander, putting his newly finished wand in a pile with the other ones he had just completed. He reached into his box of goodies - or the cores - at his feet and pulled out a jar with a glowing, blue string inside no wider than a hair. Draco knew it was one of the dragon heartstrings they had collected, but he couldn't remember which one.

He walked over and stood next to Ollivander, watching as the old man carefully inspected the item in the jar.

Putting one hand on Draco's shoulder, Ollivander handed it to him and said, "Would you do the honors of putting this core into a wand?"

Draco's jaw dropped. "You're going to let me touch something?"

Ollivander chuckled. "Just this once. I don't want you to leave here feeling like you accomplished absolutely nothing."

"Well, that's not fair, Mr. Ollivander. I think this place sparkles much brighter than when we first got here. That's plenty to be proud of." Hermione smirked mockingly at Draco, who narrowed his eyes at her.

"Just tell me what to do," he said, taking a good look at the heartstring in the jar.

"First pick a wand."

Draco was clueless as he stared at the array of empty wands in front of him. "How can I just pick one? Isn't there a science to this or something?"

"No, there is not. Just follow your gut. Which wand do you think fits the heartstring in your hand?"

Hermione watched as Draco moved his hands over the wands, eventually picking up the one she had carved the previous week with the dragon talon clutching the heart. She smiled. He _would_ pick that one.

"Now what?" he asked.

"Take the heartstring out of the jar and set it on the table." Draco did as he was instructed; noticing how the heartstring felt much stronger than it looked. "Place the empty wand down beside it." He did. "Now raise your wand and prepare yourself to perform an insertion spell. It is essentially the opposite of the extraction spell, only no potion is necessary."

Draco took out his wand and started repeating the words Ollivander was reciting to him. This was the first time Hermione had seen him use his wand since he cast his Patronus at Malfoy Manor, and she was surprised to see that it wasn't the old one she had given back to him he was holding. Somewhere along the way he had switched back to his hand-me-down wand. When had that happened?

"Hey, Hermione, I did it!" Draco shouted while looking over his shoulder and beaming at her.

Hermione smiled back. She knew this wasn't the time to bring it up. "Very nice. Does it work and everything?"

"It does," said Ollivander, flinging it about. "Well done, Mr. Malfoy. As soon as Ms. Granger is finished shaping that last wand of hers you two are free to go."

"Oh, I'm finished," said Hermione, handing him the wand she had been working on.

Ollivander ran his fingers along it, inspecting every last quarter inch. "Excellent work, as always. Now, run along and enjoy your evening. Just make sure to come by in the morning and get your itinerary for your last week. Can you believe the summer is over already?"

Hermione and Draco looked at each other and frowned. No, they couldn't believe it. For a while there it felt like this day would never come, and they had been fine with that. But, now that it was here, neither of them was ready for it. A decision had to be made before this week was over, but not today. For now they would just be together. They would not worry about the formalities until it was finally over.

The two of them apparated back to their room at the Leaky Cauldron and changed to go to a nice dinner in London. When Draco and Hermione had seen Sophie and Phillip the other day they had given them one of their cell phones so they could keep in touch. Draco had used it and successfully made a reservation at a Muggle restaurant. He was very proud.

Once they were dressed, Hermione and Draco went downstairs, holding hands and not caring who saw them. They didn't even pull away when they spotted Goyle and Daphne sitting at one of the tables with a witch who must have been their wedding coordinator, since she had a million wedding things lain about.

The Slytherins both looked up and watched as Hermione and Draco walked by, not sure what to make of their newfound boldness.

The two of them decided to take a cab to the restaurant. This was Draco's first time riding in one and he was beyond fascinated.

"So Muggle's just pay people to take them places in these things?"

The driver stared back at them curiously, but he didn't say anything.

Hermione chuckled. It was funny how things that seemed so common to her were considered new and exciting to pureblood wizards, like Draco and Ron.

"Yes, but you can't forget to kiss the cabby on the cheek before you pay him."

Draco raised an eyebrow at her. "Seriously? How gullible do you think I am?"

Hermione shrugged. "Don't mock our traditions, Draco. If you want to play Muggle tonight then you can't do it half-ass. You have to go the whole mile."

"I don't know what a moggle is, but if you try to kiss me I won't hesitate to pop you one," said the cab driver, refusing the stay silent any longer.

"It's Muggle, sir," corrected Draco. "And don't worry. I was never going to fall for her treachery." He glanced sideways at Hermione and gave her a crooked smirk. She laughed.

"Are you from out of town or something?"

Now they both laughed. "Something like that."

Dinner was at this very fancy French restaurant where they were served about ten teeny tiny courses on a set menu. Somewhere in the middle they brought out a small serving of Canard à la Rouennaise. Hermione looked at Draco skeptically.

"Let me guess. You _chose_ a restaurant serving this on purpose."

Draco shot her a wicked grin. "Whatever do you mean? I'm as surprised to see this as you are. Surprised _and_ delighted!"

She rolled her eyes at him. He chuckled and grabbed her hand from across the table, bringing it up to his lips and kissing it repeatedly.

"Won't you please keep an open mind, Mione? For me?"

Hermione huffed. "Fine. But you owe me for this."

To her utter surprise, it really wasn't _that_ bad. The blood sauce still seemed a bit morbid to her, but if she didn't think about it she could at least stomach it. Draco seemed satisfied, anyway.

After dinner Draco did not want to take a taxi back to the Leaky Cauldron. He wanted to take the Tube. He had heard stories about it over the years and secretly always wanted to experience it for himself.

Luckily, regular occupants on the Tube were used to weird people and thought nothing of Draco's shriek when it first began to move. It was pretty packed and they were forced to stand and hold onto one of the bars. Hermione laughed as he looked around frantically and put her hands on top of his.

"What do you think so far?"

"Strange … but I suppose it's efficient if you don't have a broomstick or Floo powder to get around."

"Or the ability to apparate."

One girl looked oddly at them. She must have been from out of town. The city _was_ still packed with tourists finishing their summer holiday.

Back at the Leaky Cauldron, Hermione and Draco went straight up to their room so they could spend some time alone. Draco took out a bottle of firewhiskey and poured them each a glass, making sure to water Hermione's down with butterbeer.

They both sat cross-legged on the bed and played a game with wizard cards. Somewhere in the middle of their third game, Hermione asked him, "What happened to your old wand?"

Draco was a bit surprised by her question. He hadn't realized he never told her. "Potter and I destroyed it."

"You _and_ Harry?" she asked. He nodded. "But … when? Why? I thought you'd be happy to have it back."

"I was. But then everything happened and I realized it was the one thing that I had still connecting me to my old life. A life I don't want to be part of anymore. I tried to just give it back to Potter, but he said if I truly wanted to let go of who I used to be then I should destroy it. So I did."

Hermione frowned. "Draco, you shouldn't have done that. I don't know why you hate your old self so much. You weren't all bad, you know."

Draco chuckled. "And all this coming from a girl who hated my old self."

"I didn't _hate_ you. I didn't know you well enough for that. I just disliked you immensely."

"No. I'm pretty sure you hated me. You've said before that you did."

"I'm a girl. We embellish," she said, smirking. "Did you hate me?"

Draco seriously thought about this. "Well, you annoyed me." That was a given. "But … I guess I didn't know you well enough to hate you."

"Point proven," said Hermione, leaning over the cards to give him a kiss.

Draco took this moment to scoop her into his arms and pull her onto his lap. The two of them kissed gently at first while steadily letting it become more heated and passionate. He began to run his hand along her thigh, slowly working his way up her dress.

For some reason Hermione felt extremely nervous. It wasn't just that this would be their first time being intimate since everything had happened at Malfoy Manor, but it was also their first time since Draco had told her he loved her.

Draco moved his lips to her neck while Hermione began to unbutton his shirt. She tore it off and rubbed her hands along his bare chest while his found their way into her panties.

In no time at all he had her dress off and was lying naked on top of her. Before doing anything Draco looked deeply into her eyes and whispered, "I love you."

Hermione smiled. "I love you too."

He kissed her and the two began to do what Draco finally recognized as making love. He knew now that this was what he felt that first time after their game of twenty questions. He had been afraid to admit it to himself back then, but now he had no fear. He loved Hermione and he didn't care who knew.

Hermione reached up and stroked her hands through his hair, clutching it tightly as she neared her first climax. Draco kissed her harder, loving to feel the vibrations of her moans against his lips.

They flipped over and Hermione pulled his scarred arm up to her lips and kissed it. He did the same to hers before pulling her body tightly against his. He never wanted this to end. He never wanted to let her go.

But it did end, and Draco lay awake long after Hermione fell asleep in his arms, unable to take his eyes off of her. As much as he hated to admit it his mother was right. Because of him Hermione had been hurt, and he couldn't bear the thought of it happening again. Even with his aunt dead and his father institutionalized, there were still many members of the Malfoy and Black families - though there were no direct Blacks anymore - who would not be happy about this. They would undoubtedly try to tear Draco and Hermione apart by any means necessary. If he loved her how could he willingly put her through all of that?

Draco reached down and stroked her scarred arm. She muttered his name as he did so, using this moment to snuggle in closer to him. He hugged her tightly and breathed her in. If he did decide to let her go, he knew it was going to be the hardest thing he ever had to do.

XXX

The next morning Draco and Hermione packed up their belongings and headed to the wand shop to get their itinerary. When they got there Ollivander handed them each a letter. "These are the last ones you'll receive before the summer is over. Let me know if you want to send anything out."

Hermione sat down and read her combined letter from Ron and Ginny. Apparently, Ron had heard about the 'accident' at Malfoy Manor and tried to get the Auror office to send him there when they decided to send a few Aurors in training. They refused, saying he was too emotional, and sent Harry instead, who was slightly more composed. Harry had updated them but they still wanted to hear from her that she was all right.

She wrote them a quick response, telling them everything was fine and that she was as good as new. She promised to explain things more thoroughly when she got back and told them she couldn't wait to see them the following week, even though that wasn't exactly true.

Draco didn't open his letter from his mother, but he did write one. When Hermione asked who it was for he didn't answer. She didn't push it, even though she was extremely curious.

Once their letters were finished they gave them to Ollivander, who in turn gave them their itinerary. They had one week to collect two woods, a unicorn hair, and a dragon heartstring.

"It is just a small dragon. I'm sure the two of you will have absolutely no problems. Mr. Prior and Ms. Labelle were successful in acquiring their heartstring several days ago."

Ollivander went into the back while Hermione and Draco formulated a plan. They decided they would get the unicorn hair first, then the woods, and the dragon heartstring last. That way they could finish their summer with a bang. Hopefully not literally.

Just before they were about to leave, Ollivander called Draco into the back room. Privately.

"Mr. Malfoy, I was just reading over your letter and I wanted to make sure you _actually_ wanted me to send it."

Draco had all but forgotten that Ollivander had told them at the beginning of the summer he would be reading their letters. "Of course I do. I wouldn't write it if I didn't want it sent."

"But don't you think you're being a bit hasty with it? After all, you still have a week. What if you change your mind?"

"I didn't ask for your opinion, Mr. Ollivander. I'm not going to change my mind. Please, just send the letter."

Ollivander frowned. "Well, alright. But I'm going to wait a couple of days. Just in case."

"There is really no need for that, but you may do as you please. Just make sure it is delivered before we return next week."

Draco walked back out to the front room where he collected his backpack. He and Hermione were going to use the Floo network to get to their first destination, so once they had their belongings in hand they returned to the back room and headed to the fireplace.

Before they had a chance to leave, Ollivander came up to them and said, "I almost forgot to tell you. Ms. Labelle owled me, asking that the two of you meet her and Mr. Prior at her family's chateaux in France once you are done collecting all of your items. They have a bit of an end of summer celebration planned."

"Sounds fun," said Hermione, smiling as she remembered their first time staying at the chateaux. That vineyard would always hold a special place in her heart.

Hermione and Draco said goodbye to Ollivander and took out their Floo powder, finally leaving for their last week of summer. Even though so much had happened it still felt like it had gone by in a flash. But all good things must come to an end. It was just hard not knowing how final their ending would be.

XXX

Since they had a lot to do in a little amount of time, the week flew by even quicker than they had hoped. Sophie had called and said she expected them to be at her parent's chateaux on morning of the seventh day, so they only had six days to collect everything. One less than they had planned for.

Tracking the unicorn in the Caledonian Forest was a challenge since Muggle's resided in that area. Normally unicorns chose to live in wizard regions only, but this one was a bit of a rebel, which it all but proved when it only tried to buck Hermione, and not Draco. So much for the theory that all unicorns preferred a woman's touch. This one clearly preferred something else. Once they realized that, collecting the hair was simple. Draco just went right up to it and yanked one out. It didn't care in the slightest, but Hermione had to stand twenty feet away while he did it.

Collecting the woods was easy, of course. But, as usual, the majority of their time was spent traveling between distant locations, so when the time came to acquire the dragon's heartstring they only had one day left to do it in.

Luckily, they were able to get to the foot of the mountain it dwelled on the night before. It was called Eve's Peak and it was located in Sri Lanka, protected by a magic shield only a short distance from Adam's Peak.

After Hermione and Draco pitched their tent they planned strategy. Hermione had already found information on the dragon in the book she had purchased earlier that summer. It was small for a dragon, only ten or fifteen feet long, and bright green. It did not breathe fire but it was said to be fierce. Magic kept it imprisoned on that peak, and when witches and wizards dared to try and approach it, it either acted very tame or very angry. There was one reported case where it actually let someone pet it. The wizard could have sworn he heard purring until it bit his hand off. So, no matter which mood it was in, they would have to be careful.

Even though it was very warm, that did not stop the rain from pouring powerfully against their tent. Hermione's hair was out of control in this weather. Even Sophie's hair potion was no match for the humidity. She fiddled with it, trying to stuff it into a massive, afro-like ponytail while Draco watched her and laughed.

"It's not funny!" she snapped. "Now, we need to formulate two plans. One for if it's raining tomorrow and one for if it's not. Any suggestions?"

"Maybe if you braided it or -"

"_Not_ about my hair!"

"Oh, calm down, Mione. We both know you're not going to concentrate until you stop fidgeting with it. You look fine."

"Really?" she asked, looking very unsure while continuing to use both hands to pull the hair back by the roots.

Draco reached over and grabbed her hands, holding them affectionately in his while leaning forward and kissing her. When he pulled away he looked into her eyes and said, "You look beautiful."

Hermione groaned. "Oh, I hate it when you do that," she said, pulling her hands out of his.

"What? Compliment you?" he smirked.

"Yes, exactly. And all sincere-like. It's weirding me out so stop it."

"You're _beautiful_, Hermione."

"Stop it!"

"Radiant, ravishing, enchanting, magnificent -"

"Now you're just being rude."

"Oh, come on. Weasley never compliments you?"

"Of course he does!" She paused, looked off to the side, and added, "But never just because. He tells me I look beautiful if I'm dressed up to go somewhere."

Draco sighed. "He's a fool."

"He's honest."

"I'm honest," said Draco, nudging her chin back towards him. "You're beautiful, frizzy hair and all. Now, can we get back to work so we don't get to bed too late? I still plan on shagging you tonight."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You see. _That_'s the charm I'm used to."

Their plan was simple. They would approach the dragon first, rain or shine, and see what sort of mood it was in. If it was in a good mood this would be easy. And if it was in a bad mood … well, that's where their plan split.

If it was sunny they were going to remain on foot, apparating to the highest points to use their ropes they had purchased and charmed to trap him. But if it was raining their vision would be too skewed. Luckily, so would the dragons. They would use their brooms and get it to chase them straight up, above the clouds, where they could get a clear shot and lasso it before steadily bringing it back to the ground. As long as they stayed above the peak the dragon could follow.

Once their plan was decided, Draco and Hermione headed to bed. They, of course, didn't go to sleep right away, but they weren't up for long. This was their last mission and they wanted to be well rested for it.

When they woke up the next morning, neither of them were able to eat breakfast. Their stomachs were in too many knots.

There was no need to take down their tent since they would be returning to it after they acquired the heartstring. Hermione and Draco still had one more night together before they had to be at the chateaux, and they weren't going to give it up by arriving early. As much as they loved Sophie and Phillip they really wanted this time alone.

With their brooms in hand, their ropes tied around their waists and a small satchel of supplies strapped to Draco's hip, the two of them headed for the top of Eve's Peak. It wasn't a horribly tedious venture. While the sky was overcast there was currently no rain falling. They used their brooms and stayed low to the ground for the majority of the way, but once they got close they traveled the remaining distance by foot.

And then they were there. Only one more step around a rock wall until they would be at the tiptop of the peak. Draco looked back at Hermione and smiled. "Ready for this, Granger?"

Hermione smiled back. "Malfoy, I was born ready."

They both chuckled before reaching their hands out and grabbing hold of one another. "This is it," said Draco, giving her hand a squeeze.

Hermione squeezed back and the two released before walking around the corner. The moment they did it started pouring. "Of course," said Hermione, hiding the fact that she was secretly happy to have her hair wet and mildly under control.

The dragon was not hard to find. It was bright green and curled up on a flat rock directly in front of them. It lifted its head when it saw them, tilting it while staring at them with wide, yellow eyes. It didn't seem to know what to make of them. Who knew how long it had been since it had last seen a person.

Draco grabbed back onto Hermione's hand and the two of them took slow and steady steps in the dragon's direction. It kept bobbing its head from side to side while continuing to watch them approach him.

"Everything looks good so far."

"Draco, don't jinx it!" Hermione said in a harsh whisper.

They were now halfway across the peak. The dragon jumped off its rock and took several steps forward, sticking its head out and sniffing around like a dog.

"Does it like us?" asked Draco.

"I don't know," said Hermione, pulling him back as she slowed her steps even more.

The rain was coming down heavy now, making it so all they could see was a green blob approaching them. They stopped. A horrible rumbling sounded. At first Draco thought it was thunder but Hermione shook her head.

"No. It's the dragon."

"So … it doesn't like us then," said Draco, releasing her hand and moving his broom in front of him, ready to mount it at a moment's notice.

The dragon roared and pounced for them. Apparently, this was their notice. Draco successfully got onto his broom and took off into the air but Hermione was knocked to the side, her broom thrown out of her hands and far across the peak, all but lost in the rain.

"Distract it, Draco!" shouted Hermione before darting in the direction her broom had gone.

The dragon tried to chase her, but Draco kept zooming in front of it, annoying it to the point where it decided to go after him instead.

"Where is it? Where is it?" Hermione repeated to herself, all while searching the ground for anything broom-like. Eventually she found it. Unfortunately, the moment she reached for the broom the dragon jumped in front of her, smashing it to a million tiny pieces. It roared loudly, releasing its disgusting dragon breath all over her face.

"Well, damn you!" she roared right back at it.

It tried to take a bite out of her, but Draco zoomed by and scooped Hermione onto his broom, flying high above the peak.

"So what's plan B?" he screamed over the wind.

"No plan B!" she shouted back. "I guess we're going to have to wing it!"

"You? Wing it?" He smirked back at her. "Hold on tight, Mione!" She did as he instructed. Draco sharpened his angle and shot straight up into the clouds. Hermione clenched her eyes shut, but they had only been like that for a couple of seconds when Draco shouted back to her, "Keep your eyes open!"

Hermione opened them, letting the wind and rain hit her face as they zoomed high into the sky. And even though a dangerous dragon was chasing after them, that did not take away from the joy she felt. She and Draco laughed together as they hit the clouds, swerving around a bit to mix up the dragon before flying above them.

Unsure of how they were going to lasso the dragon effectively on the same broom, Hermione carefully turned around so she was facing the back of it. She untied the rope from around her waist and tried to toss it over the dragon's neck while it chomped at the bristles of their broom. But her elbows kept hitting Draco's back.

"This isn't working!" she shouted, knowing very well what she had to do. She gulped. "Pick up the pace!"

Draco did as he was told. Once he was a decent distance from the dragon, Hermione tossed the rope around her neck and held firmly onto the broom while lifting one of her feet up. Once it was planted on the handle she leaned forward and lifted the other.

"What the bloody hell are you doing?" Draco reached back and tried to pull her down but Hermione pushed him off.

"If I'm going to get it I need to be higher than you!"

"But you'll whip right off once you have it!"

"Then get ready to levitate me!"

Hermione let go of the broom and steadily straightened her legs, holding both arms out to balance her. Draco wanted to cast a glue charm on her feet but she told him no. If he did then he would be the one to go flying off the broom when she got the dragon.

Once she was steady, Hermione removed the rope from around her neck and began to swing it above her head. "Slow down a bit!"

Draco did. The dragon flew closer, letting out a deafening roar. Hermione released the lasso, catching it directly over the head and around the neck. The dragon pulled back and she was whipped off the broom, holding onto the rope for dear life.

"_Wingardium Leviosa_!"

While Hermione no longer felt like she was falling, it was hard to pull back on the rope with nothing but a levitating spell to brace yourself. Draco would have to lasso the dragon before she would be able to do anything more.

But seeing Hermione dangling like that was enough motivation for him to immediately swoop around the back of the dragon and swing his rope at it. He got it on his first try.

Draco pulled one way while Hermione pulled the other, creating a sort of deadlocked game tug-o-war with the dragon in the middle. It ravaged around but wasn't successful in getting free.

With Hermione levitating it would be impossible to lower the dragon to the ground without her losing her hold, so they would have to obtain the heartstring up here.

Since Draco's wand had been used to levitate Hermione, it was up to her to perform the extraction spell, which was hard since Draco had the satchel with their supplies. He took out the potion and held it flat on his palm. Hermione cast her own levitating spell and carefully moved it in front of the dragon's head, but still out of its reach. When it opened its mouth to roar she shot it in.

Since she had done this several times before, Hermione now knew the spell by heart. Before long a glowing silver string no wider than a hair was emerging from the dragon's chest and headed towards her. Since she did not have a jar on her and it would be too much of a hassle to bring one from Draco's satchel, she wound it up and put it securely in her pocket, all the while still keeping a firm grip on the rope.

"You're amazing, you know that?" shouted Draco from the other side of the dragon.

Thunder sounded below them. Both of them whipped their heads in its direction. Draco's levitation spell released and Hermione went tumbling towards the ground, her hands sliding down the rope until there was nothing left to hold onto.

Forgetting all about the dragon, Draco let go of his rope and went flying for Hermione. She drifted farther from him, almost invisible once she hit the clouds. When they got through them he picked up his speed even more, reaching out his hand until their fingers were touching, then their palms, and then he had her.

The dragon was right behind them and Draco didn't have time to pull her onto his broom. He started flying towards the foot of the peak, hoping to hit the edge of the barrier that kept the dragon imprisoned here before it could get them, but it was hard to fly fast with Hermione dangling from one of his hands.

The dragon reached one of its talons out and knocked the back of the broom. Hermione and Draco went flying, rolling across the ground to a spot that was just beyond the dragon's reach. It hit the barrier like a brick wall, its face becoming bloody as its ferocious roars became more of a howl. It sat down on the other side of the shield, watching Hermione and Draco climb back to their feet with sad eyes.

"Draco," panted Hermione. "I think it might have liked us after all."

"You mean it was just playing? Someone should teach him about the appropriate amount of roughness to apply when dealing with humans."

Hermione tore a branch off of a nearby tree and used her wand to toss it to the top of the peak. The dragon wagged its tail before taking off after it.

Bending at the stomach and placing his hands on his knees to catch his breath, Draco glanced sideways at Hermione. "I just realized something."

"What?" she asked, attempting to catch her own breath.

"Why the bloody hell didn't we use the invisibility cloak?"

Hermione and Draco looked at each other, their faces frozen. They were exhausted and covered in dirt and sweat, their bodies aching with unnecessary cuts, bruises, and rope burns. And then they smiled, both of them suddenly overcome with a burst of hysterics. They fell to the ground in laughter, holding their stomachs as tears fell from their eyes while they exuded breath they did not have.

But then their tears became real and, before they knew it, they were crying in each other's arms. This was it. Their summer was over. Even if they did decide to stay together it would never be the same. Hermione and Draco had spent their last three months in a bubble, only slightly poked by the outer world. Now their bubble was bursting, and plenty of people on the outside were standing there, just waiting to watch them fall.

The dragon reappeared with the branch in its mouth, tossing it over the barrier so it landed beside them.

Hermione and Draco looked at it and chuckled between their sobs. Draco picked it up and used his wand to toss it this time. The dragon went after it excitedly. "Maybe we should write to other Weasley and have him and his dragon pals come and pick this guy up. He seems pretty lonely."

Hermione looked at Draco pensively and smiled. She hated that he knew what it was like to be lonely. Grabbing his hand, she said, "I think that's a wonderful idea."

The two of them moved so they were sitting against a rock, their arms around each other while they waited for the dragon to return. The least they could do was play with it for a little while. Hopefully, with a little companionship it could have a better life.

Over the course of the summer Draco had discovered that this was what he had always needed, and Hermione, Sophie, and Phillip had given that to him. No matter what happened next, this summer had changed him forever. Hermione had changed him forever.

XXX

The next morning Hermione and Draco woke up at sunrise. They had promised Sophie and Phillip they would arrive at the chateaux early.

While in the middle of packing up their backpacks, Draco went behind Hermione and hugged his arms around her waist. She squeezed back against him. They stayed like that for a long moment, only breaking their hold when Ollivander's owl flew in. Hermione moved and grabbed the jar they had put the heartstring in, handing it off to the owl. She also handed it a letter they had written to Charlie Weasley about the dragon. They had named it Summer after Hermione brought her dragon book out and discovered it was a girl.

Once the owl was gone the two of them got back to their packing, neither of them saying a word as they kept stealing glances at each other.

When they had everything that belonged to them cleared out of the tent and into their backpacks, Hermione and Draco headed outside. It was a beautiful day without a cloud in the sky. They looked at each other and rolled their eyes. Of course the weather was perfect now.

They worked together to pack up their tent for the last time. A lot of great times had been had in that tent. It was hard to believe they would never sleep in it again.

As soon as it was safely put away in Draco's backpack, they shared their last kiss alone before mounting their only broom and heading to the closest wizarding town. Sophie had already setup a Portkey at a friend's house there to take them to France. Her friend worked at the Ministry of Magic in Sri Lanka and made all of the arrangements for them to travel between countries in a timely manner. Normally, the use of one for this great of a distance would not have been approved so quickly, but she called in a few favors. For some reason Sophie wanted them in France really badly. They couldn't help but wonder why.

Hermione and Draco arrived a bit early for the Portkey and Sophie's friend insisted they eat some breakfast. Neither of them was very hungry, but they didn't want to be rude so they each managed to stomach a few bites of food.

"So are you excited?" asked the witch. "I am just so bummed I cannot be there."

"Be there for what?" Hermione asked.

The witch's face went white. "Oh … right. Never mind." Before Hermione could ask more, a timer went off. "One minute until the Portkey is ready!" She jumped up and grabbed an old spatula off the counter, plopping it in the middle of the table. "Have fun, you two! And tell Sophie good luck for me!"

Draco and Hermione grabbed hold of the Portkey. When their minute was up it felt like a hook grabbed them behind the navel and pulled them across a great distance in record speed. Neither of them was very good with Portkey's, and when they arrived in France both attempted to land on their feet, only to fall on their bum's a second later.

"Zis ees zem! Queeck! Get zem to zeir rooms!"

Someone grabbed Hermione's arm and pulled her to her feet. They took her backpack and shuffled her over to a woman who guided her inside. Once her eyes had a moment to focus she realized it was Sophie's mother.

"Oh, hello, Mrs. Labelle. I didn't know you would be here."

The woman smiled over at her. "I know. Let's get you upstairs to Sophie."

Hermione looked around for Draco but he was nowhere in sight. But there were tons of other people, all moving quickly with flowers and chairs and food and a million other little things while a wizard with a clipboard ordered them around. Sophie's mother shouted something at him before ushering Hermione upstairs.

"What's going on? Are you and Mr. Labelle having a party or something?" she asked, honestly clueless. The soiree they were apparently preparing for was definitely larger than the end of summer celebration she had been expecting.

Mrs. Labelle did not answer her, but continued to smile as they walked down the second floor hallway to the master bedroom. She opened the door and Hermione was immediately greeted by someone squealing her name and grabbing her in a big hug.

"Eet ees about time you got 'ere."

Sophie pulled away. Her dark hair was pinned up in an elaborate style and her makeup was soft, other than the bright red lipstick that made her emerald eyes pop. Currently she was wearing her pajamas, but a long, white dress was laid out on the bed.

"Uh, Sophie, what's going on?"

Sophie laughed. "Oh, come, on, 'Ermione. I zought you were supposed to be smart?"

"I think … I need to hear you say it."

"Alright zen." Sophie held out her hand, showing Hermione the sparkling diamond ring on her finger. "Phillipe and I are getting married!"


	38. Chapter 38

**A/N: Should be two more chapters after this one. Maybe three, but hopefully not since I'm a big numbers person and it will annoy me to death if I end this story on Chapter 41 **

**:-P**

**Just remember it's not over yet.**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Hermione didn't know much about engagement rings, but the one Sophie was wearing was easily one carat, if not bigger. Definitely much more than Phillip could afford.

"But … when … how?"

"Zere weell be plenty of time for questions later," said Sophie's mother, grabbing Hermione's shoulders and guiding her into a chair. A strange witch immediately started working on her hair, but not before giving it a very blatant look of disapproval.

"'Ermione, what in ze name of Merlin 'appened to your 'air?" asked Sophie, noticing its incredible body - and not the good kind - for the first time.

"Humidity," answered Hermione. "Wait. Hold on a second. Why am _I_ getting my hair done?"

"Because you are a bridesmaid, of course!" smiled Sophie. "And Draco ees a groomsman. You two weell look so cute walking down ze aisle together. Good practice, maybe?"

Hermione blushed. "Sophie, I just saw you less than two weeks ago and you weren't engaged. When did _all of this_," she motioned to the wedding activity going on around her, "happen?"

Sophie smiled and sat down beside her. A second later another witch came over and started doing her nails. "Phillipe proposed a couple of days after zat, just after we got our dragon's 'eartstring. 'E 'ad been planning to do eet at ze end of ze summer, but when we succeeded at somezing so eencredible, just ze two of us, we shared zis magical moment. Ze next zing I knew 'e was on one knee and asking me to be 'is wife."

"Wow. I just got goose bumps," said Hermione, holding out her arm to show her. She began eyeing the ring on Sophie's sprawled out hand while the witch got her French manicure.

Sophie followed her eyes and smiled down at it. "I know eet ees beeg. Much more zan Phillipe can afford."

"Not to be rude … but how _did_ he afford it?"

"Draco leant 'im ze money," she said.

Hermione's jaw dropped. "Draco knew about this? Before me?"

"Before me," laughed Sophie. "Zey went ring shopping together when we were steell separated. Draco 'elped 'im choose eet. When Phillipe tried to peeck something small 'e could afford I guess Draco would not let 'im. 'E said I was a classy weetch and I deserved a classy ring. Eet ees just a loan. 'E plans to pay 'im back." Sophie sighed. "I know I should 'ave made 'im return eet and get me something more practical, but I really, _really_ love eet."

Hermione smiled. "Then you should really, _really_ keep it. You know Phillip never would have agreed to let Draco lend him the money if he didn't truly want you to have _this_ ring. He must have seen a piece of you in it. You should definitely keep it."

"I was 'oping you would say zat," said Sophie, exhaling in relief.

"I still can't believe Draco didn't tell me about this. Ow!" Hermione felt like she was being scalped by the witch doing her hair. There was so much twisting and tugging going on she was surprised she had anything left up there to work with.

"Well, to be fair, 'e deed not know Phillipe proposed already, and 'e 'ad asked 'im to keep eet a secret. 'E knew I would want to tell you."

"It seems pretty crazy downstairs. How did you plan such an elaborate wedding in a week? And while still working?"

Sophie glanced at her mother, who was explaining something to the makeup artist. The two exchanged a smile. "Mere does zis for a leeving. When I told 'er Phillipe proposed and we wanted to get married at ze end of ze summer she started planning immediately. Ze only zing I picked was ze dress. Ze rest was all 'er. Zough, I may 'ave suggested a few zings."

"Why so quickly?"

Sophie shrugged. "No reason really. We are just eager to start our life together. We already wasted so much time trying not to fall for each other. Why waste more when we already know zis ees what we want?"

"Well put," said a familiar voice from the doorway. They both looked over to see Fleur Weasley leaning against the doorframe with a very prominent baby bump beneath her dress. A vision of loveliness, as always.

"Another bridesmaid!" shouted Sophie's mother. "You," she pointed at the makeup artist. "Get to work on 'er immediately!"

Fleur walked into the room and gave both Sophie and Hermione kisses on the cheek before practically being pushed into a chair by Mrs. Labelle.

Hermione was a little stunned to see Fleur here. She knew the two of them were friends, since Sophie had written to her earlier that summer, but she didn't know they were close enough for Fleur to be a bridesmaid in her wedding.

"Is Bill here?" she asked.

"No," answered Fleur, holding her face completely still while the makeup witch went to work on it. "'E stayed 'ome wiz Victoire. She ees much too young to travel all zis way."

"Oh," she said, secretly wondering if Bill decided to stay behind because of her. Surely Sophie had told them Hermione was going to be here, and Mrs. Weasley would have been more than happy to watch her first grandchild.

"You seem surprised to see me, 'Ermione. Deed Sophie not tell you about our yin and yang days?"

Hermione blinked. "Uhh … what?"

Sophie chuckled. "Zat was what zey called us een school. I was ze yin since I 'ave dark 'air and she was ze yang since she 'as light 'air. As a pair we were … a beet troublesome.

"Ha!" laughed Mrs. Labelle from across the room. "Ze two of zem were more zan just troublesome. Zey were a pain een my ass!"

Sophie and Fleur laughed. "Mere worked at Beauxbatons coordinating all of zeir events during my early years. Eef eet were not for 'er Fleur and I would 'ave been expelled."

"On more zan one occasion," added Fleur.

"I knew I recognized you from the Triwizard Tournament when we met, Sophie, but were you at Bill and Fleur's wedding too?"

Sophie began staring at her hands, clearly avoiding Hermione's eyes. "Yes, of course I was."

Fleur chuckled. "Ooooh. So _zat_ ees why you never told 'Ermione about yin and yang."

Sophie whipped her head towards Fleur and started yelling at her in French. She was telling her to keep her mouth shut.

"You already know I understand French, Sophie. Did something happen at the wedding?"

"Oh, eet ees nothing, 'Ermione," said Fleur. "Sophie just does not want you to know zat she made a move on Viktor Krum at my wedding."

"FLEUR!"

"Zey dated for a year after zat."

Several obscene French words came out of Sophie's mouth. "'Ermione, I am _so_ sorry I deed not tell you! But zere ees no good way to mention to someone zat you 'ave ze same ex-boyfriend!"

Hermione burst into laughter. She had to admit, she was surprised, but she couldn't care less. "Viktor is very sweet. I don't blame you for falling for him in the slightest. Plus, he was never my boyfriend. Not officially, anyway."

"Yes, 'e was very sweet … and, you know, _famous_." Sophie and Fleur exchanged a smirk and a wink.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You and I sure seem to share the same taste in men, don't we?"

Sophie yipped with glee. "And now you know why I never told you!"

When Hermione's hair and Fleur's makeup was finished they were ushered out of their seats and made to switch places. Sophie went and sat on the bed while her nails dried, looking extremely nervous, especially after her mother had to go downstairs to deal with some crisis.

"I'm not late, am I?"

They all looked over to see a plain but pretty witch standing in the doorway. Sophie squealed and ran to her, careful not to ruin her nails while snatching the stranger into a hug. She grabbed her hand and pulled her over to Hermione.

"'Ermione, zis ees my maid of honor, Caroline. She worked wiz Phillipe and me at Zinx."

"Nice to meet you," said Caroline, giving her a firm handshake. "Sophie sent me several letters about you this summer. They became much friendlier towards the end. Knowing Sophie, I'm sure the beginning must have been dreadful for you."

"Oh, aren't you just 'ilarious!" said Sophie, shoving her playfully before pushing her into the chair to get her nails done.

"How are you doing, Fleur?" Caroline asked while the manicurist went to work. "I saw Gabrielle downstairs. She is the spitting image of her big sister. Pierre is following her around like a lost puppy. The poor kid didn't stand a chance."

Fleur smiled proudly. "She takes after 'er beeg seester een more ways zan one."

"And how are Bill and Victoire?"'

"Zey are perfect, of course! I 'ated to leave zem but zere was no way een 'ell I would meess my yin's wedding."

Caroline rolled her eyes. Looking at Hermione, she said, "Weren't yin and yang over here the exact kind of girls you hated in school? I know I did."

Hermione laughed. "Actually, they were. It's hard to believe that now we're in yin's wedding."

"And yang weell be your future seester-een-law," said Fleur. When Sophie gave her a sharp look, she added, "Maybe," then, "'Opefully."

"Ooooh, I sense drama!" shouted Caroline. "I want the entire story. Wait … why aren't we drinking yet?"

Within seconds they all had a glass of champagne in their hands - other than Fleur, who had sparkling cider. Once all of their hair, makeup and nails were done, Mrs. Labelle reappeared with their bridesmaid dresses. Since it was an outdoor, summer wedding they were short, cut just above their knees, and a vibrant periwinkle in color. The witch seamstress had to adjust Fleur's, since her stomach was larger than they had anticipated.

When they were dressed they all banded together to help Sophie into her wedding gown. It was strapless and fitted all the way to her hips before trailing out to a long and luxurious train. The dress was pure white, completely devoid of any kind of sequins, other than a threaded flower pattern down the left side. Sophie was already so beautiful she didn't need to overcompensate with jewels. She looked incredible.

Instead of a veil, Sophie wore a wreath of white roses. Each of her bridesmaids was given a smaller wreath with periwinkle roses, obviously dyed to match their dresses.

Her something old was a simple, gold necklace that belonged to her Muggle grandmother, her something new was the dress, and her something blue was her bridal underwear. Her mother covered her ears when she talked about it. When they were trying to decide her something borrowed, Fleur stepped forward and clasped a bracelet around her wrist. Sophie gasped.

"Are you sure?"

Fleur nodded and Sophie hugged her. Apparently, Sophie had always loved that bracelet in school, but Fleur refused to lend it to her. Hermione got a sinking feeling that 'frenemy' was probably an appropriate word to describe Sophie and Fleur's relationship. At least in their youth. They seemed to have matured a bit with age. Emphasis on the 'a bit'.

Sophie went over to the full length mirror and took a good look at her reflection. For the first time since Hermione had met her, she looked at herself with uncertainty. Hermione came up behind her and wrapped her arms around her shoulders. "You look beautiful, Sophie. Phillip is going to love it."

"I 'ope so," she said, taking a deep breath. "I honestly cannot believe zis ees 'appening. Eef someone 'ad told me at ze beginning of ze summer zat Phillipe and I would be getting married I would 'ave laughed een zeir face."

"Sometimes life takes us down the most unlikely of roads."

Sophie smiled at Hermione through the mirror. "No one knows zat better zan you and Draco. 'Ave you two made a decision yet? Are you going to stay together?"

"Not yet."

"But -"

"Don't worry about us, Sophie. This is your day. Remember?"

Sophie sighed. "I just want ze two of you to be 'appy. Like me and Phillipe."

"Sophie." They both turned to see her mother smiling. "Eet ees time."

Fleur and Caroline squealed with excitement. They all helped Sophie gather up her dress and headed downstairs. Mrs. Labelle ushered them into the kitchen, where they were all handed bouquets made from the same roses in their wreaths. Sophie's larger bouquet had both white and periwinkle roses in it.

Sophie was made to wait inside while the bridesmaids headed outside to find their groomsmen counterparts. Hermione spotted Draco immediately, chatting with Phillip. He looked very debonair in a gray suit with a blue tie and a periwinkle rose pinned to the lapel.

"Well, well, well. Don't you two look dashing." Draco turned around and smiled when he saw her.

"And you look surprisingly beautiful. I'm impressed they were able to fix that mess you had made of your hair."

Hermione smacked his chest. He grabbed her wrist, pulled her close and kissed her.

"Don't listen to him, Hermione. You really do look beautiful and there is nothing surprising about it," said Phillip.

Hermione smiled at him. "Thank you, Phillip. If you think I'm beautiful, just wait until you see the bride." She eyed his suit and asked, "How come no dress robes?"

Phillip laughed. "The bride vetoed it. She's been to several Muggle weddings and preferred the men's suits to wizard's 'unflattering' dress robes."

"So are we getting zis zing started?" Fleur asked, suddenly bursting through Draco and Hermione, and pushing them apart.

The wizard Hermione had seen earlier with the clipboard appeared out of nowhere and grabbed Phillip's arm. "Music's starting. Groom goes first!"

Phillip looked back at all of them nervously before heading down the aisle by himself. The wizard started pulling the bridesmaids and groomsmen into pairs, explaining what they had to do in a condescending tone. He was clearly frantic and kept mumbling something about it all going to hell since there had been no rehearsal. Draco snapped at the wizard about his language at a wedding and he shut his mouth immediately. Hermione smiled at Draco and rubbed his arm dotingly.

Sophie's mom came outside with a young boy and girl attached to each hand. The flower girl and the ring bearer. She headed down the aisle first - just after an older couple who must have been Phillip's parents - and told the children to follow her once she got to the other side. They both nodded very seriously.

After the children went it was their turn. Fleur went down the aisle first - somehow withholding that silvery glow that normally followed her everywhere so she would not outshine Sophie - with a wizard who Hermione was pretty sure was a seventh year when she was a first year at Hogwarts.

She and Draco were next. They looked at each other and smiled excitedly before heading down the aisle.

While walking down the pathway sprinkled with periwinkle rose petals, Hermione was surprised to see several familiar faces in the crowd. Mr. Ollivander was there, of course, and smiling widely with the witch, Ginger, at his side. She was obviously his date. The entire dragon crew was there too: Charlie, Annaleigh, Daniel, Jen, and Jay. Anna and Daniel were holding hands, and Charlie nodded civilly as they passed.

When Hermione and Draco got to the front of the aisle, they squeezed hands before moving to opposite sides of the altar.

Next came Caroline and the best man, who she seemed to be familiar with. Hermione guessed he probably worked at Thinx too. And then it was time for the bride.

Everyone rose from their seats as Sophie appeared at the end of the aisle on the arm of her father. Hermione stole a glance at Phillip who was literally breathless as Sophie began to walk towards him. They were both sniffling as they kept their eyes on each other, neither of them able to control their wide grins.

When Sophie reached the front of the aisle, her father gave her a kiss on the cheek before shaking Phillip's hand and giving him his daughter's arm. Tears were visible in the man's eyes.

Hermione had a hard time controlling her own tears as the ceremony began. She kept having to wipe them away, especially when Sophie did a cute little hiccup while reciting her vows. "I, Sophie Anne Labelle," _hiccup_, "take you, Phillip Igor Prior …"

Behind Hermione Fleur was all tears, and Caroline wasn't much better. Normally when a couple got married as quickly as Sophie and Phillip, not all of their friends and family were supportive, but everyone here was extremely happy for them. Anyone could tell that this was a love built to last.

"… then I declare you bonded for life."

Just like at Bill and Fleur's wedding, the wizard marrying Phillip and Sophie waved his wand high over their heads, a shower of silver stars falling all around them. They leapt into each other's arms and kissed in the midst of it all. Everyone applauded and several fireworks in the shape of flowers went off just above their heads.

Sophie and Phillip headed back down the aisle, laughing as they walked hand-in-hand. Caroline and the best man followed them first, shadowed closely by Draco and Hermione, then Fleur and her groomsman.

"I can't believe I never knew Phil's initials spelled Pip!" Draco said into her ear. "This opens a whole new world of nicknames."

Hermione laughed. "And Sophie's spell Sap now."

Draco's eyes lit up. "By Merlin, you're right! From here on out I shall call them Pip and Sap."

"I'm sure they'll both _love_ that."

The guests were all escorted into the vineyards after the ceremony. They were served champagne and hors d'oeuvres - all floating freely on trays through the air - while the wedding party took photos, and the workers quickly transformed the courtyard into a reception area.

Out of all of the photos they took, the ones that were the most fun were of just Hermione, Draco, Sophie, and Phillip. They snapped several goofy ones before finally letting the photographer pose them properly.

Sophie insisted that the photographer take photos of each of the bridesmaid and groomsman couples individually. Hermione and Draco knew this was only for their benefit, but they did not argue. This was her day and if she wanted to continually push them together then they couldn't stop her. Even Fleur bit her tongue, though, she obviously didn't want to. Especially when Sophie insisted the photographer take a kissing photo of them.

After the photos were finished, they all headed to the reception and made their grand entrance. The bride and groom, along with their wedding party sat at a head table. Hermione was seated between Caroline and Fleur, constantly eyeing Draco on the other side. She could tell he was getting anxious by the way he kept glancing at her and then turning away. His hands kept shaking while he downed several glasses of champagne.

Hermione's stomach started to turn. Something didn't feel right. And she was pretty sure she knew exactly what it was.

When dinner was finished, the band started playing and the bride and groom shared their first dance. They looked lovingly into each other's eyes while spinning around the dance floor, too caught up in one another to even notice when other people joined them.

Draco and Hermione were two of the first onto the floor. It seemed that this was the only way they could be alone. They held each other close, even during the fast songs, only letting go when Karma Chameleon began to play and Sophie insisted they all dance together.

The four of them swung around the dance floor in a circle, swooping through each other's arms until they were a tangled mess, eventually ending up in a hugging heap, rocking back and forth.

When the song was over the wizard with the clipboard appeared out of nowhere and shuffled Sophie and Phillip over to the cake. Hermione and Draco hadn't seen it until now and they laughed when they noticed it was decorated with Purple Polly Flowers.

Sophie and Phillip fed each other cake with their arms linked. He put a dollop on her nose and licked it off. She giggled and did the same. While everyone was busy watching them, Hermione and Draco tried to sneak off, but ended up running right into Charlie Weasley.

"Hello Hermione. Draco," he said, giving them each a nod.

"Hello Charlie," Hermione said back. "We actually sent you an owl this morning. Though, I'm sure you haven't -"

"I got it," he said. "Right before we had to leave for here. I'll check this dragon - uh, Summer, out. The laws dealing with dragons were very different when she was imprisoned there. I'm sure we can find a better place for her."

"Oh, that would be wonderful! Thank you so -"

"We have a problem!" Caroline appeared out of nowhere and pulled Hermione and Draco away. Once they were all hidden in a corner beside the stage, she said, "Chastity is here."

Hermione's eyes widened. "What? But … why?"

Caroline shrugged. "Don't know. She won't tell us. Just keeps saying she needs to talk to Sophie and Phillip."

"_Both_ of them?" asked Hermione.

"Yes. Seth is keeping her busy right now but I don't think she's going anywhere."

Hermione and Draco looked at each other and frowned. "I suppose we could try talking to her," said Draco, "but, I should warn you, other than a very public brawl in Hogsmeade, we don't have much history with Chastity. If you didn't have any luck getting rid of her I highly doubt we will either."

Caroline groaned. "Hermione, you're smart, right? Isn't there a spell we can cast to just make her go 'poof'! Gone!"

"Well, there are spells like that, but nothing legal, and the 'poof' would probably be a little more definite than what you are going for."

"I'm alright with that."

Fleur and her groomsman appeared in their hidden corner. "She says eef we do not send zem out een ten meenutes zen she ees coming een. Seth ees all but ready to wrestle 'er to ze ground. Geoffrey 'ere refuses to 'old 'im off."

"That witch has it long coming," said the groomsman who must have been Geoffrey.

"Well, maybe if we all go over there as a unified group she will back down," suggested Hermione. "Can we try that?"

They all agreed but Hermione had a sinking feeling this was not going to go well. She seemed to be the only sensible one in this group. Everyone else was too headstrong.

Only seconds after they all rounded the corner to go and confront Chastity, Phillip and Sophie were standing in front of them with their arms crossed.

"What's going on?" Phillip asked.

"Nothing!" they all said at the same time, making it sound even more unconvincing.

Eyeing the group in front of her, Sophie's eyes fell upon the weakest member. "'Ermione, you would never lie to me, would you?"

"O-of course not," said Hermione, biting her lip.

"Zen tell me. What were you all just talking about?"

"How _beautiful_ this wedding is!" exclaimed Draco, throwing his arm around Hermione's shoulders. "Good job!"

Sophie narrowed her eyes at him. "Now leesten 'ere! I am ze bride and eef I want to know what my wedding party ees up to zen you better damn well tell me!" Her face began to twitch in fury. Everyone, including Phillip, took a step back from her.

They all exchanged looks before Hermione finally admitted, "Chastity is here. She wants to talk to the two of you."

Both Sophie and Phillip went ghostly white, but they stayed composed. Sophie grabbed onto Phillip's hand and said, "Lead ze way."

Caroline looked at Hermione skeptically before walking towards the front of the chateaux. She led them out of the gate and to the graveled driveway. Chastity was sitting on a bench under a tree while Seth stood protectively between her and the entrance.

Chastity stood up as they approached, her eyes fixed on Phillip. "Hi," she said, suddenly noticing the foul-faced posse standing all around her. She sighed and moved her eyes to Sophie. "You look very beautiful, Sophie. Congratulations to the both of you."

"Yes, yes. I am very beautiful. Blah, blah, blah. Let's cut to ze chase. What are you doing 'ere, Chasteety? I can assure you your eenvitation was not lost een ze mail. How deed you even know about zis?"

Chastity cast her eyes to the ground. "Anna asked me for permission to come. But she didn't tell me where it was," she added quickly. "This is the third place I've been today. Please don't be angry with her!"

Caroline was already taking her earrings off. She was going to march back in there and pull Annaleigh out by her hair.

"Let her be, Caroline," said Phillip. "Now, if you could all please take a few steps back. Chastity has something to say and we're going to listen." There were grunts all around, but everyone obeyed. Looking to his ex-wife, he added, "Make it fast, Chastity. I would like to get back to my wedding, if you don't mind."

Chastity nodded and took something out of her pocket. She held it out for them. Everyone leaned forward and saw that it was a huge, antique diamond ring.

"I already 'ave one, zank you," said Sophie, stroking the diamond on her finger.

Chastity chuckled. "No, it's not for that. This is the ring Zandicus gave me. It was his grandmother's." Sophie and Phillip looked at her curiously. "I went to give it back to her a couple of days ago, but she refused to take it. She said I was the best her grandson was ever going to get and she didn't want some chauvinistic trash wearing it in the future."

All of the former Thinx employees laughed. "That's Zara Thinx for you," said Seth.

Chastity nodded. "Anyway, we got to talking and I told her about the two of you. Phillip, you were more like a son to Zanzar than Zandicus ever was."

Hermione could not help but cringe at all of the horrible names in that family. Maybe it was time for them to get away from the Z's.

"That's why she wants you to have this. For you and Sophie to start your life together. And," she shuffled around in her pocket, pulling out a piece of paper, "this."

Sophie took the ring and eyed it with interest while Phillip read the paper. He gasped. Everyone's eyes were on him.

"What ees eet?" asked Sophie, leaning over to get a look at the paper.

"S-she's giving us Thinx! The company, Thinx!"

Chastity smiled. "It's not much right now. Just a name, really. But, with the money you get from that ring, I'm sure the two of you will have no problem returning it to its former glory."

"My heart literally just skipped a beat," said Caroline with one hand on her chest.

"You're going to hire us back, right, mate?" asked Seth.

Phillip laughed. "Of course. Chastity … this is -"

"Too much!" said Sophie, nearly in tears. "Why are you doing zis for us?"

Chastity shrugged, her own tears forming behind her eyes. "I've made a lot of mistakes in my life. This is me trying to make up for them. I just want the two of you to be happy."

Sophie reached forward and pulled Chastity into a hug. When she let her go, she said, "You at least deserve a piece of cake for zis! Please come een to ze reception."

Wiping her face clean, Chastity looked down at her casual attire and said, "No thank you. I'm hardly dressed for a wedding."

"Nonsense!"

"No … really, I should be going. Good luck to both of you." Chastity took one last sorrowful look at Phillip before disapparating.

Once she was gone, everyone headed back into the courtyard. First Fleur, then Geoffrey, Caroline and Seth. But before Hermione and Draco could walk through the gates, Sophie and Phillip pulled them back.

"Eet ees time for you two to get out of 'ere."

"Yeah, you don't have to keep humoring us. Go to the vineyards. Be alone."

"Zey put your stuff een ze same room you stayed een last time. For whenever you are ready." Sophie winked. "You can sneak around ze back. I weell make sure Fleur and Charlie do not follow you."

Hermione and Draco looked at each other and nodded. They clasped hands and said, "Thank you," before heading around the side of the chateaux.

The two of them remained silent as they walked through the vineyards, both deep in thought while they automatically headed to the same spot they had been in their first time here.

When they got there Draco took a seat on the ground, pulling Hermione onto his lap. He wrapped his arms around her waist and entwined his fingers with hers, relaxing them on her lap. She leaned back and nuzzled her nose against his cheek.

After a long moment like that, Draco knew it was time for them to start talking, even though he dreaded it more than anything else in the world. "Hermione … I -"

"Please don't," she said, a tear falling from her eyes and onto his cheek. "I already know what you're going to say."

"But … how could you -"

"I was awake, Draco. I heard you and your mother speaking."

Draco sighed. "I thought you might have."

"Is that really what you want? To let me go?"

"No."

"Then why are you?"

"I never said -"

"You didn't have to." She turned her body on his lap and looked into his eyes. Hers were already glistening with tears. "I could see it in your eyes all week. I can see it now. You're going to forget about me." The tears began to fall.

"No!" he said, putting a hand on her damp cheek. "No. I will _never_ forget about you. I love you."

"Then why are you doing this? Why are you listening to _her_?"

"Because she was right," he finally admitted. "I can't be selfish. If anything ever happened to you because of me or my family I could never forgive myself. I won't risk it!"

"But I'm willing to risk it! I love you, Draco! I _want_ to be with you!"

Draco shook his head. "No. I won't let you do that. It's too late, Hermione. I already wrote to Weasley. I told him he's the better man and he's the one who should be with you, not me. He deserves you … He called for you."

"_You_ called for me!"

"Three years too late."

"But you couldn't -"

"I could have! I was just too scared to do anything! I didn't save you! I didn't do anythi -" Draco choked on his words. He pressed his forehead against hers and cried openly while she did the same.

"Please … Draco … I love you."

"And I love you."

Draco removed his forehead and met her lips with his. Both of them sobbed while they kissed each other, the taste of salty tears lingering on their tongues. His hands cradled her cheeks while hers were wrapped around his waist. She was almost afraid to loosen her grip, fearing if she did she might never get to hold him again.

When their kiss ended, Draco and Hermione stayed in their spot, hugging each other well into the evening. Once the sun was set and the stars took over the sky they knew they had to get back to the reception. They used their wands to clean each other's faces before walking back to the courtyard with their arms wrapped around each other.

By the time they got there, the band was just starting to play their last song. Draco led Hermione onto the dance floor and pulled her close. The two barely moved their feet as they held each other. Hermione hid her face in his hair, not wanting Sophie and Phillip - who were watching them from their own spot on the floor - to see her cry.

When Hermione looked up for a split second, Sophie caught her eye and gave a slight shrug of her shoulders, trying to ask what happened. All Hermione could do was shake her head before nestling back into Draco's neck.

Sophie began to sob. This was not what she expected when she sent them off together. Phillip held her close, the two of them sharing one of the first of many dances to come, while their friends shared their last.

Fleur and Charlie were dancing close to them, watching the entire exchange. They looked at each other, unsure of how they were supposed to feel right now. While it appeared Ron had won, they couldn't help but fear it was by default.

Once everyone was gone and Sophie and Phillip retreated to the master bedroom for their wedding night, Hermione and Draco headed to their own room. The moment the door was shut he kissed her. She pulled of his jacket and undid his tie, making sure their lips never lost contact while she unbuttoned his shirt.

With one quick unzip, she was out of her dress and the two of them were falling onto the bed. Draco held her face in his hands, continuing to massage her tongue with his, never wanting to lose the feeling of her lips pressed against him.

They stopped for a short moment to catch their breath. Draco looked down into her desolate eyes, nearly bursting into tears at the sight of them. He kissed her again, leaving one hand on her cheek while the other pulled off his boxers. She did the same with her underwear.

Even after they were both naked they did not start right away. The sooner they began, the sooner it would end, and neither of them was ready for that.

Finally, Hermione pulled him against her, running her hands up into his hair while he moved slowly inside of her. The closer they came to finishing, the harder they cried. Everything felt so perfect. So right. How could this be it?

When it was over neither of them moved. Hermione hugged her arms tighter around his neck while his were wrapped underneath her. "I don't want it to be over," she cried into his ear.

"Me neither," he said, kissing her wet cheek. "But it has to be."

He rolled off of her, but she would not let him pull her with him. Hermione moved to the other side of the bed, staring mindlessly at the wall.

"Hermione, please come here," he said behind her.

She shook her head. "I can't. I can't sleep in your arms knowing it's the last time. I'd rather remember it as being last night. When I wasn't sure this would be it."

"Hermione … please. Let me hold you this last time. I _need_ this last time."

Hermione sobbed before turning around and scooting back into his arms. She rested her head on his chest and listened to his heartbeat for one final night. Even after they fell asleep tears continued to fall from their eyes. Summer was officially over and two hearts were left broken as a result.

Neither of them had planned to fall in love, but maybe this unexpected circumstance was exactly what they needed to move on from their unfulfilled lives, and hopefully find something more. Maybe now they could both finally find a way to be happy. But, in this moment, it seemed impossible that either of them would ever be happy again.


	39. Chapter 39

**(Author's Note at end of chapter)**

The next morning Hermione and Draco got ready to leave in silence. When she went into the shower it took everything he had not to follow her in there. In a moment of weakness he tried to open the door, only to discover she had locked it. He then wished he had never tried.

When Draco got out of his own shower Hermione and her stuff were already gone. Leaving everything of his behind, he ran out of the room and into the kitchen, where he could hear voices. Phillip, Seth and Caroline were all sitting at the table.

"Good morning," said Phillip before taking a sip of his coffee.

"Did you sleep well?" Caroline asked brightly.

"Uh … yes," he said, taking several more steps into the room. "Has Hermione left yet?"

Phillip sighed. "No. She's still here. She and Sophie went outside a couple of minutes ago. They should be back shortly."

"Do you want some breakfast?" Caroline was already using her wand to levitate a plate over to the table for him. It would be rude to say no.

Draco sat at the table and nibbled on a piece of toast, all while keeping his eyes steadily fixed on the door.

"If you're freaking out this much about her being outside for five minutes, then why the bloody hell did you dump her, mate?"

"What?" Draco asked startled. He'd already forgotten other people were around. "I - It's for the best."

"Says who? Your father tried to kill her and she _still_ wants to be with you. You're not going to find a girl like that again."

"Ookay! Seth, I think we should go in the other room for a bit," said Caroline, getting to her feet and pulling Seth, who had been listening with great interest, with her. "Come and get us when you and Sophie are ready to talk about Thinx, Phillip."

As soon as they were gone, Phillip asked, "What are you doing, mate?"

"The right thing," answered Draco, throwing his barely touched piece of toast back on his plate. He wasn't hungry.

"The right thing for who? Hermione's heartbroken. She doesn't want that other bloke. She wants you. Merlin knows why."

"She'll thank me in the long run."

Just then, the door to the courtyard opened and Sophie walked inside with Hermione trailing behind her. "Oh. Good morning, Draco. Deed you sleep well?"

"Not really," he said, looking at Hermione.

She avoided his eyes and asked, "Are you ready to leave?"

"Yes." Draco got up from his seat and went to the room to grab his things. When he got to the fireplace they were going to use to get back to Ollivanders, Sophie was hugging Hermione goodbye.

"Tell Mr. Olleevander zat we weell be by zis afternoon to drop off 'is stuff and peeck up our payment. We just 'ave a few zings to do 'ere first."

"You'll owl me as soon as you get home from your honeymoon, won't you?" Hermione asked.

"Of course." Releasing Hermione, Sophie turned her head and looked at Draco. She walked over and threw her arms around his neck while Phillip hugged Hermione. Holding him close, Sophie whispered into his ear, "Eef you are serious about zis, Draco, and I mean really serious, zen you need to stay away from 'er. Do not contact 'er, do not try to be 'er friend. Stay away. Eet ees ze only way she weell be able to get over you. Do you 'ear me?"

Draco nodded against her. "I hear you."

"But … eef you change your mind … you damn well better get to 'er."

Draco chuckled. "Yes, Sophie."

"Good." Sophie pulled away and gave him a kiss on the cheek. She ran out of the room before anyone could see her burst into tears.

Phillip came over and shook Draco's hand. "I'll contact you when we get back from our honeymoon. We'll get a drink. I have a feeling you're going to need one. Or twenty."

"Yeah … thanks, mate."

Phillip nodded and left, leaving Hermione and Draco alone. She fiddled with the strap of her backpack, unsure of what to say. Draco put his down and walked over to her.

"I'm not very good with goodbyes," said Hermione once he was standing next to her.

"Me neither."

"So then how do you want to do this? Do we just shake hands or -"

Draco didn't give her a chance to try and shake his hand. He grabbed her in his arms and kissed her. She kissed back, already on the verge of tears as she ran her hands up his back and into his hair for one final time. When it ended they leaned their foreheads against each other, both of their eyes closed.

"Give me five minutes before you follow, will you?"

Draco nodded his head against hers. Hermione gave him one last peck on his lips before walking over to the fireplace. She stopped in front of it, staring blankly into the orange flames.

"I know I didn't exactly come out and say this last night but, for the record, I chose you." Draco's heart all but stopped as he looked at her throwing in the Floo powder. When the flames turned green, she looked back at him, stared deep into his gray eyes and said, "Goodbye Draco." She stepped into the fireplace, "Ollivanders Wand Shop," and went zooming away from him.

Hermione kept her eyes closed until she arrived at her destination. The backroom of Ollivanders shop was empty and she took this moment to wipe her face clean of tears.

Her empty suitcase from the first day was sitting in the corner with the others. She went over to it and quickly transported her stuff from the backpack into it. As soon as that was done she headed to the front room where Ollivander was just finishing selling a Hogwarts student their first wand. The moment they walked out the door she went up to him.

"Ah, Ms. Granger. That was quite a shindig last night, wasn't it?"

"Yes, it was all very exciting," she said, glancing nervously at the door to the backroom.

"Exciting indeed," he said, smiling thoughtfully at her. He opened a drawer behind his counter and pulled out an envelope with her name on it. "Anyhow, here is your payment. I hope you had a good time working for me this summer."

Hermione took the envelope and smiled. "The best." A loud clang came from the backroom. She quickly stuffed the envelope into her pocket. "I should be going. Thank you so much for this opportunity, Mr. Ollivander. It was a great experience and I will never forget it." Hermione opened the door to leave, but then remembered something and turned around. "I almost forgot. Sophie and Phillip told me to inform you that they will be by this afternoon." Another clang. Her heart skipped a beat. "Goodbye."

She rushed out the front door just as the back one was opening, leaving Draco with nothing but a glimpse of her bushy hair gliding away from him.

When Hermione got outside, she was moving so mindlessly, she almost didn't notice Ron standing right in front of her. "Hi," he said as she approached.

Hermione had never been so happy to see someone in her entire life. She couldn't hold it in any longer. She ran into his arms, bursting into tears the moment they touched. He held her, letting her cry on his shoulder while he stroked her hair.

"Merlin, I've missed you, Ronald Weasley."

Ron let out a sigh of relief. "Good. I was afraid you hadn't." After a long moment of holding her, he asked, "Are you okay?"

"Of course," she said unconvincingly. "Why wouldn't I be?"

He pulled away from her, reached into his pocket and held up a piece of paper. Draco's letter. "Just an inkling."

Hermione looked at the letter in utter disgust. "I don't want to read that. Please, just throw it away."

Ron took out his wand and evaporated it to dust.

"Thank you for not saying something cliché like 'you got what you deserve' or 'I told you so'."

Ron half-smirked. "Well, I can't say I told you so because I never actuallytold you anything, just implied that he was a git. But, believe it or not, I actually think what he did was very," he gulped, "nice. He dumped you for a valid reason. I _almost_ have respect for him. But that's a very big almost."

Hermione wiped the tears from her eyes. "Ron, I -"

"You don't have to say it, Hermione. I already know."

"You do?"

"I knew before the summer even began. I just didn't want to admit it to myself." Ron paused, took a deep breath and said, "You don't love me anymore."

"But I do love you," she cried, reaching for his hand.

He pulled away from her touch. "Not in the way you used to."

Hermione sighed. "No."

Ron looked at her, his eyes beginning to flood. He rubbed at them. "Boy, no matter how much you prepare yourself, you're never quite ready to hear the truth, are you?"

"I'm so sorry, Ron," she said. "I never should have asked for this break. I should have just been honest with you … and myself, and called it off the moment I knew it wasn't right."

"Which was?"

Hermione didn't even have to think about her answer. "The moment you proposed, I suppose," she said truthfully. Ron turned away from her. "Do you hate me?"

He squinted his eyes shut, letting several tears fall down his cheeks. Then he shook his head. "No. Part of me wishes I did, but I could never hate you, Hermione." She leaned in and hugged him again. While they cried in each other's arms, he said into her ear, "At least I can safely say it was over before Malfoy came into the picture. If it wasn't I could _never_ live that down."

Hermione chuckled. "I'm sorry I put you through all of this. I know how much you hate him."

"I do hate that git, but I can't blame him for falling for you. You're kind of amazing." Pulling away, Ron avoided her eyes and asked, "Do you think … one day … maybe you and I …?"

Hermione tried to smile, but it was hard to do with Draco still so fresh on her mind. "I honestly don't know, Ron. Maybe. But, for now, I think I just need to be alone and forget about … things." One thing in particular.

"I can respect that." Ron looked over at the window to Ollivander's shop, where he saw a familiar wizard with a pointed face watching them. He shook his head at him. "Come on, let's get out of here," he said, taking Hermione's bag from her and throwing his spare arm around her shoulders. "I told Ginny and Harry we would come and see them once you got back. The _bride_ wants to drag you on some wedding errands with her."

Hermione let Ron lead her away, wrapping an arm around his waist while refusing to look back at the face she also saw in the window.

Draco watched them leave, finding himself longing to be the arm wrapped around her shoulders. He had been unable to tell if they had gotten back together. It seemed that they hadn't, but the animosity that should have been there was completely nonexistent. Maybe Weasley really was the better wizard.

"Mr. Malfoy, if you could please come back here and test this wand, I have a lot to do today."

Draco took one last glance at Hermione's disappearing head before walking over to Ollivander and taking the ash wand he had requested. He tested it out. It worked as well as he remembered, but something was a bit off.

"It's a good fit," said Ollivander. "Works well for you."

"Yeah."

"But, if I may." Ollivander went to his shelves and pulled out a narrow box from near the top of one of the highest stacks. He opened it and placed it on the counter. Draco recognized the wand immediately. It was the one he had put the dragon heartstring into.

Draco lifted the wand out of the box. He could feel the power surging through his fingertips the moment he touched it. Holding the wand high, he gave it a flick. While he did not feel like he had as much control with this wand as he did with the other, it was definitely more powerful.

"How does it feel?"

"Different," said Draco, "but not bad. What is it made out of?"

"From that tree you found in the desert. While it was one of a kind and has no real name, I suppose it most closely resembles acacia. It's eleven inches, unyielding, with a dragon heartstring for its core, of course."

"Which dragon?"

"It is that first one your group encountered. In the mountains near Hogwarts."

Draco paused and stared at the wand for a moment. He hated to admit that he had a special place in his heart for that dragon. It was after he saved Hermione from it that she decided to be with him instead of Phillip. He gulped as his throat became raw. Draco started to put the wand back in the box.

"Ms. Granger carved that wand herself."

Draco stopped and looked at it again, this time running his fingers all along it, until they stopped at the head of the wand. He rubbed what appeared to be a dragon claw clutching a heart with his thumb. He chuckled. The vines along the sides of it reminded him of heartstrings. Had she been thinking of him when she made it? Even if she hadn't, there was no way he could ever use it without thinking of her. Draco put the wand back in the box.

"Are you sure, Mr. Malfoy? While the other wand may be a better fit, this one seems to have a stronger connection with you. The greatest wands aren't necessarily the easiest."

"I'm sure," said Draco, picking the ash wand back up. "This is the one I want."

Ollivander sighed. "I never thought you were one to play it safe." He closed the box and put it back in its place. "Very well, then. It is your decision to make. But the wand chooses the wizard, Mr. Malfoy, and I believe that wand has chosen you. Therefore, I will not sell it to anyone else. It will be here if and _when_ you change your mind."

Draco nodded before sticking his new ash wand in his pocket, placing his old, hand-me-down one in the empty box and packing it in his suitcase. "Would you mind if I kept my stuff here for the time being? I have a few things I need to do before I return to the manor."

"No, of course not," said Ollivander, taking Draco's suitcase and sticking it behind the counter.

"Thank you."

Draco left the wand shop and headed into the streets of Diagon Alley. The truth was he had nothing to do. He just wasn't ready to return home yet. It was always so cold there, so lonely. How could he go back to that after experiencing what it felt like to be somewhere warm?

Draco wandered mindlessly for hours, eventually ducking down a street he had never been on when he saw one of the Weasley's walking by. Just then, a breeze picked up.

"My hat!" a girl called from outside one of the shops.

A red hat flew by him. "_Immobulus_!" The hat froze and he picked it up.

"Thank you!" shouted a dark-haired witch running up to him. "Oh! Draco!" She smiled widely at him while taking back her hat and putting it on her head. "I wasn't aware you were back in town."

Draco stared at her blankly for a moment before remembering she was the Healer who had tended to Hermione. And a Slytherin, if Hermione had been correct. "Uh, yes, just got back, actually. How are you?" he asked, even though he didn't particularly care.

"Oh, just fine, just fine." She looked back at the shop she had just come from before leaning in and saying, "To tell you the truth, I can't wait for this whole wedding to be over and done with. Daph is a bridezilla to the core." Draco had no clue what that term meant.

"Oh, Stori! Where are you?" Daphne emerged from what appeared to be a flower shop, her eyes scanning around for the other witch. She looked surprised when she spotted Draco, but her expression was not unpleasant. Goyle walked outside just behind her. Daphne took his hand and they both walked up to them. "Draco, fancy meeting you here. Is, uh, Granger with you?" she asked in an attempt to be polite.

"No," he said vaguely.

"Oh," said Daphne.

"Is she meeting you later?" asked the other witch nosily. He seemed to remember that 'Stori' was short for something.

"That's not really our business, is it, Astoria?" said Goyle.

That was it! Astoria. Draco remembered now. She was Daphne's younger sister. Far better looking now than she ever was during their years at Hogwarts. He remembered her being a bit gangly. She always sat across from him in the common room and stared at him. It was kind of creepy.

"It's fine," he said, even though he had little interest in answering. "No, we're not meeting later. Granger and I had a summer arrangement, and now the summers over. If you want to speak with her I suspect you'll find her with Weasley somewhere." His insides cringed. He thought pretending he didn't care would make it easier. It didn't.

"Oh," said Astoria, sounding sympathetic but looking delighted. "So … you're not together?"

"No."

Astoria looked at Daphne, who looked at Goyle and raised her eyebrows. He shrugged at her. Daphne smiled.

"Actually, Draco, we're really glad we ran into you. Gregory and I feel just awful we didn't invite you to the wedding, but, well, to be honest, we weren't sure if you would come. I know the two of you haven't exactly been on the best terms these last few years."

That was putting it mildly. "If I got an invite out of the blue I wouldn't have come," he said honestly.

"Oh," said Daphne. "But … what if you got an invite now?"

Draco raised his eyebrows. "I thought the guest list was already set?"

"Well, it is -"

"But I still have a plus one!" shouted Astoria. Daphne shot her a sharp look. The younger sister blushed.

Draco didn't remember much about Astoria, but he did remember her conversation with his mother in the kitchen. "Didn't you tell my mother you were going with a groomsman?"

"Blaise, yeah," she said, casting her eyes to the ground. "Our parents arranged it."

Goyle laughed. "A match made in heaven." He was much wittier than Draco remembered.

"Oh, shut it," said Daphne, smacking his chest. "The point is Stori doesn't _want_ to go with Blaise. You would really be doing us a favor by being her date. And I'm sure we could manage to squeeze your mother in somewhere. She told Stori she would love to come, and we would love to have her."

Draco looked down at the dark-haired witch staring at him with hopeful eyes. He wasn't an idiot, he knew this wasn't Daphne's or Goyle's idea. Astoria clearly had a crush on him. It was probably all some premeditated plan for if they happened to run into him. She didn't even seem to care that if he did say yes it would only be for a rebound.

He was just about to say no when he heard a familiar laugh. He looked over and saw Hermione turning the corner with the female Weasley and Potter's house-elf. They locked eyes. In a flash she had her friend by the arm and pulled her in the other direction.

"Hermione, what are you doing? The flower shop is that way."

"Let's get some ice-cream first. I would really _love _some ice-cream."

The house-elf looked at him and waved brightly before following them.

Draco frowned. Less than an hour apart and they were already running into each other.

He sighed and turned back to Astoria, who was staring at the spot Hermione had just been. She turned and met his eyes. He took a good look at her for the first time. She was actually quite pretty … and a pureblood. And while he currently didn't feel any attraction to her, since his heart was elsewhere, there was a chance that one day he might. She seemed nice enough, anyway. A rare find in a pureblood Slytherin. Also, his father would never try to kill her. It was horrible that he now had to add that to his checklist for what to look for in a future girlfriend.

One thing was certain about Astoria. She was a safe bet. Just like his wand. So, on impulse, Draco smiled and said, "I'd love to be your date."

Astoria beamed at him. "Really?"

He nodded.

"That's wonderful," said Daphne. "I'll make the arrangements. Maybe the two of you should go off somewhere and Stori can give you the details." She looked at her sister and winked.

"Sure," said Draco, positive he would not be taking her for ice-cream. He offered her his arm and she took it delightedly.

Draco walked through Diagon Alley with his head held high. He knew that the witch on his arm was exactly what he needed. She was his best chance at getting over Hermione. A girl his family would not disapprove of to the point of harming.

Still, it would take time before he would be ready to move on completely because … well, one fact did not escape him: Astoria Greengrass was no Hermione Granger.

**A/N: First off, this is NOT the last chapter.**

**That being said … here's the deal. I started this story off with a certain ending in mind but, somewhere along the way, it kind of took a life of its own and made me go in a whole other direction. While I hate changing the ending I always planned on having, I think I might do it anyway since I have to stay true to the story.**

**So this is what's going to happen. I'm going to write both endings and see which one is a better fit. Then I'll decide which one to post. I've already started on them and it looks like one of them will be two chapters, while the other will be just one.**

**I should warn you right now, only ONE is a happy Draco/Hermione ending. I know that about 99% of you will want me to post the Dramione ending whether it's the better one or not but, like I said, I have to stay true to the story … and I'm not going to tell you if that's the one I'm leaning towards or not. ;-)**

**There is a small chance I will post both endings if I really can't decide, but I would rather not do that. Either way, _Summer of the Dragon_ will be finished sometime within the next week.**

**Thanks for all of the support I have received! Without it I never would have had the motivation to finish my story so quickly.**

**See you at the end …**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**


	40. Chapter 40

**A/N: Went with the two chapter ending so it's not over yet. I'm not going to tell you which one I chose, but I think after you read this one it'll be pretty obvious.**

**Sorry I keep teasing you and saying it's going to end, only to drag it out longer, haha. The next chapter really _will_ be the last one. I plan to post it hopefully by Friday or Saturday. It's finished but still needs some tweaking because … well, it's the last chapter and I won't settle for anything less than perfect.**

**Also, I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

Draco awoke with a fright. His body was completely drenched in a cold sweat. Whether he dreamt about dementors, vampires, dragons, giant spiders, house-elves or his father, it always ended the same. With Hermione's body held lifeless in his arms.

He looked over at the girl lying beside him, once again left with that feeling of regret that always came with knowing it wasn't her. While Astoria had proven to be a good companion over the last few weeks, Hermione was never far from his mind. Where was she now? Was there also someone lying beside her? If so, did she wish it was him?

Draco carefully climbed out of bed, so as not to disturb Astoria, and left the room. He went into the kitchen and poured himself a glass of water, chugging it down eagerly. He didn't think it was possible to miss someone this much. His heart ached constantly. Sometimes he found himself clutching it, trying to ease the pain it caused him.

After finishing another full glass, Draco started to head back to the room, but his hand stopped on the knob. He wasn't ready to get back into that bed with Astoria yet so, instead, he went and lied down on the couch.

Just a few short days ago he had finally taken the plunge and moved into his own place. The only reason he had not done it sooner was because he was helping his mother take care of his father, and now there was no need for that. Plus, there were just too many memories at Malfoy Manor. Too many things he wanted to forget.

Astoria had been kind enough to take the entire day off of work to help him move his things. She had tried to seduce him that night, something that used to be so easy for witches to accomplish, but he couldn't do it. He couldn't bring himself to sleep with her yet. Not with Hermione still fresh on his brain.

Astoria had slept over every night since, but never got any more than some light snogging before Draco pretended to fall asleep. Why couldn't he shag her? This was what he did. This was what he was good at. If he could just bring himself to do it then maybe, for one brief moment, he would be able to forget about Hermione. How it felt to hold her, to kiss her, to fall asleep with her in his arms.

Draco closed his eyes and tried not to think about her, only to end up drifting off to sleep with visions of her smile in his head. When he opened his eyes again it was morning, and Astoria was standing over him wearing nothing but his button up shirt.

"Couldn't sleep again?" she asked solemnly. This was the second night in a row she had found him on the couch.

"Yeah … sorry," he said, standing up and stretching. He leaned in and gave her a small kiss, something that never quite felt right. If she felt it too she never let on.

She smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him again with much more gusto. When she pulled away she asked, "Would you like some breakfast? I'm not the best at cooking but I can make the basics." She went into the kitchen and started going through the groceries she had bought for him.

"What does the basics consist of?" he asked.

"Oh, you know. Eggs, bacon, pancakes. Nothing too elaborate - Oh! I can make omelets! Would you like an omelet?"

Draco smiled. He had to admire her enthusiasm. She was definitely trying here. He only wished he could meet her halfway. "Sure. An omelet sounds great."

Astoria went to work in the kitchen. She was a natural, cracking eggs with her wand over here while using a knife to chop peppers over there. Still, she wasn't as good at chopping as Hermione was.

Draco cringed and clutched his head. He _had_ to stop comparing the two of them. There would never be any similarities between them because Hermione and Astoria were completely different people. That was what drew him to Astoria in the first place. She was what he needed, while Hermione … well, she was what he wanted.

When Astoria was finished she put an omelet in front of Draco before sitting across from him with her own. Her eyes were completely focused on him as he took that first bite. "So what do you think?" she asked nervously.

Draco chewed it down and said, "It's wonderful. You're amazing in the kitchen, love."

While Draco had always used that term of endearment generously, Astoria seemed to smile extra brightly whenever he said it to her. She began to eat her own omelet, stealing glances at him after every couple of bites.

"So are you completely dreading tonight?" she asked when they were just about finished.

"Yes," he answered. Over the course of the last few weeks he had been spending a lot of time with Astoria which, in turn, meant he had been spending a lot of time with Daphne and Goyle. During that time the two wizards had begun to redevelop a friendship both had thought lost forever. He had invited Draco to his bachelor party tonight without any badgering from Daphne or Astoria. This was why he had to go.

"Blaise will be there. I hear he's still sort of bitter about me blowing him off for you. That won't be awkward, will it?"

"Probably."

Astoria's face sunk. "Oh."

"Not just because of you," he added quickly. "You forget that all of these people I'm seeing tonight ditched me after the war. It's going to be awkward no matter what."

"Well, for what it's worth, I think you did right. You-Know-Who's beliefs were a bit excessive. The world is better off without him."

"Do you believe in pureblood superiority, Astoria?"

The witch thought about this. After a long pause, she said, "While I do think we purebloods are owed certain advantages over Muggle-borns, I don't necessarily think we are superior to them. If we are it is only because we have known the wizarding world longer and are more familiar with it."

That seemed as good an answer as any he was going get from a pureblood.

Just then, a loud noise came from the window. They both looked over to see an owl pecking at it. Draco went over and opened it. The owl swooped in and dropped a letter on the table. He picked it up and read it.

"What is it?" Astoria asked, trying to play off her nosiness as idle conversation.

"Oh nothing. My friend, Phil, is back in town and wants to meet for drinks tomorrow."

"Phil," she repeated, searching her mind for recognition. He could tell the moment she hit it. "He's the one you worked with over the summer, isn't he?"

"Yes," said Draco, scribbling a quick response with a place and time.

Astoria looked at the owl - which was now perched on the couch - tensely. He knew what she was thinking. She was worried he was only meeting with Phillip to talk about Hermione, which wasn't completely inaccurate. It wasn't that he didn't want to see him, but he also really wanted to know how _she _was. Phillip and Sophie were their only mutual friends. From here on out they were his only connection to her life.

"I have to get ready for work." She stood up and walked towards the bathroom to take a shower, already unbuttoning her shirt. Before she went in, she turned around and asked, "Any chance you'll join me?"

Draco glanced at her for a split second before looking back to his letter and pretending he was writing more than what he already had. "No. I have to finish this. Sorry."

Astoria sighed. "No worries. Next time." She dropped the shirt and let him take a nice, long gander at her naked body before heading into the bathroom and shutting the door.

Even though Astoria was beautiful, Draco didn't even feel the slightest bit aroused right now. He sighed before attaching the letter to the owl's leg and sending it on its way.

XXX

Hermione sat alone at the Muggle coffee shop that was just around the corner from hers and Ron's former flat, waiting for Sophie to arrive. She had gotten back from her honeymoon only yesterday and owled Hermione immediately.

Looking down at her small bag she had charmed to hold all of her stuff, Hermione sighed. The first night after she had gotten back she stayed with Ginny, who was nice enough to console her while she cried and told her everything about Draco while Harry stayed with Ron. After that she more-or-less moved back in with her parents. As of today Ron now lived in a much smaller flat in Diagon Alley while she was staying at home until she figured out her next step.

"'Ermione!"

Hermione looked up and smiled when she saw the beautiful witch she had come to love. "Sophie!" She stood up and grabbed her in a hug. "Merlin, I've missed you! How was the honeymoon? Tell me everything."

Sophie sat down, the glow of her recent marriage still shining through her eyes. "Eet was _amazing_. After a summer like zis one, we just wanted to go to one place and relax. No traveling, no zinking, just 'im and me." The waitress came over and took both of their orders. Hermione got an herbal tea while Sophie got a cappuccino.

Once she was gone, Hermione asked, "Where did you go?"

"Bora Bora. We got one of zose Muggle 'uts on ze water. Eet was beautiful. Maybe you and Draco should go and -"

"Sophie, please don't," said Hermione sternly. "It's over between us. You know that."

Sophie frowned. "I just do not understand why. Eet ees not like you and your boyfriend are getting back together. Maybe eef you just talk to 'im and -"

"It's too late, Sophie. He's," she gulped, "already seeing someone else."

Sophie's jaw dropped. "What?"

Hermione nodded. "A pureblood witch named '_Astoria_'. I mean, what kind of name is that anyway?"

"An awful one! But when deed zis 'appen? How?"

"It was just a few hours after we got back. I was helping Ginny with wedding stuff and I saw him with her. Then I ran into them the next day. Then twice the day after that. I've been avoiding Diagon Alley ever since. I mean, honestly, before this summer I _never_ ran into him anywhere. And now he's _everywhere_. It's like the Gods are messing with me."

Sophie sighed. The waitress came over and put down both of their drinks. "I just do not understand why ze two of you weell not even try," she said before taking a sip of her cappuccino.

"I already told you I was willing," said Hermione. "But he's just so convinced that something bad will happen if we do. Or … maybe he didn't care about me as much as I thought. Maybe he was always looking for an easy out. Maybe - OWW!"

Hermione clutched her cheek. Sophie had just reached across the table and slapped her. Hard. "Snap out of eet, 'Ermione! How dare you doubt 'is feelings for you! You _know_ Draco loves you. _I_ know Draco loves you. But what I do not know ees who een 'ell zis person sitting een front of me ees. Ze 'Ermione Granger I know would _never_ give up like zis. She would fight for 'er man!"

Hermione stared at Sophie with wide eyes, her lips slightly parted in a surprised expression while one hand was still holding her cheek. After a minute like this she started to laugh, which was something she hadn't done in days. It felt good and, before long, Sophie had joined her.

"I am sorry, 'Ermione. I did not mean to -"

"No, no! It's fine! I think I really needed that. I've been so depressed these last few weeks I never even considered fighting for him. Do you really think I should?"

"Uh, _yeah_!"

"But what if he's not interested? What if," she gulped, "he really has moved on?"

"'E 'asn't."

"But what if he has?"

Sophie gave her a mischievous grin. "Zen we weell 'ave to make sure 'e remembers 'ow great ze two of you were together. Phillipe ees seeing 'im tomorrow. I weell make 'im give Draco zese." She reached into her bag and tossed several photos from their wedding onto the table. The first one being of Draco and Hermione kissing.

Hermione picked it up and frowned. "Merlin, I hate him."

"Only because you love 'im."

Hermione sighed. Sophie was right. She did love him, and it was only getting worse with each passing day. No matter where she was or what she did, Draco Malfoy was never far from her mind. Maybe she would have to find this '_Astoria_' and hex her like she had promised. If she couldn't have Draco, at least messing with his girlfriend would give her some gratification.

"Why do you 'ave zat wicked smile on your face? What are you zinking about?" asked Sophie, leaning forward with her own wicked smile.

Hermione's only grew wider. "Oh, nothing. Just thinking about what I'd do if I was a more spiteful person."

"Well, lucky for you, I am very spiteful. Tell me what eet ees and I weell make eet 'appen."

Hermione considered this for a moment before shaking her head. "No. If I win Draco back I want it to be fairly. I want him to choose me because he wants to, not because his new girlfriend suddenly went bald or was covered with warts or something."

Sophie squealed with laughter. "You are a better weetch zan I!"

With a heavy sigh, Hermione looked at her friend and smiled genuinely. "Merlin, I've missed you, Sophie. Promise me that whatever happens we will always be friends. Even if things don't work out the way you - well, both of us want."

Sophie rolled her eyes. "Of course we weell, 'Ermione. I do not let just anyone eento my life. You are a keeper," she said, reaching her hand out and placing it on top of Hermione's. "Now, 'urry up and finish your tea. You and I are going out to 'ave some fun!"

Hermione and Sophie spent the remainder of the day traveling around Muggle London and seeing the sights. It was the most fun Hermione had had in a long time.

Sometime in the late afternoon, Hermione and Sophie had to separate, since Hermione had to be at the Weasley's to discuss last minute wedding plans. It was hard to believe Harry and Ginny would be getting married in just two days. After telling Sophie that Ginny had said Phillip could come to the wedding too - since Sophie was still doing her hair - she gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek and said goodbye.

Hermione had slightly fibbed to Sophie about the time she had to be at the Weasley's. She just really wanted an hour or so alone before having to spend the entire evening with Ron in close proximity. Even though they had both decided this breakup was for the best, it still wasn't quite right between them, and very well might never be again. Mrs. Weasley could barely look at her, which was probably what hurt the most.

Somehow, at the end of Hermione's wanderings, she found herself standing on the ground floor of St. Mungo's hospital. She wasn't sure how she had gotten here or what mind frame she had been in, but she hoped her subconscious didn't want her to _actually_ hex Astoria.

When the receptionist asked her who she was here to see, she didn't know what to say. Out of panic, she told them the only person she knew who was staying here. "Uhh … Lucius Malfoy, please."

Since Lucius was such a high profile wizard, the receptionist had to call up and make sure it was all right for Hermione to see him. She didn't know how but, somehow, she got the okay to go up.

He was staying on the fourth floor, which was normally reserved for witches and wizards with spell damage, but there wasn't really a proper place to put him. He had a private room all the way in the back, which made it so Hermione had to pass the Janus Thickey Ward on her way there. She took a peek inside, wondering if this was where she would have ended up if Ron and Harry hadn't saved her in time. Perhaps death would have been the better option.

There was a guard outside of Lucius's door, who stepped aside when Hermione approached. She took several deep breaths before opening the door and walking inside.

Lucius was sitting up in his bed. He didn't seem surprised to see her in the slightest. "Hermione Granger," he said. "Never thought I'd see you here."

"You actually remembered my name," she said. "Color me impressed."

"Yes, well, my wife brought me some candy the other day and I got your chocolate frog card. And then I got it again. And then a third one. They certainly make a lot of you."

Hermione didn't say anything. She just looked around the room awkwardly. What was she doing here?

"Please, have a seat," said Lucius, motioning to the chair beside the bed.

Hermione did, but she still could not look at him. "This was a mistake," she said, suddenly shooting up from her chair. "I should go. I'm sorry to have wasted your time." She darted for the door.

"Granger, get back here." She turned around to see Lucius pointing to the chair. She looked longingly at the door before returning to her seat. "Now, why is it that you came to see me?"

"I … don't know," she said honestly. She finally found the courage to look at him. Lucius seemed much healthier already. He had gained back some of the weight he had lost, though his cheekbones still looked a little sunken. His hair was long and straight and as lovely as ever while his eyes had found some of their former sparkle, though they still felt a bit cold. "You're looking much better."

"Yes, well, I suppose I have you to thank for that. If you hadn't shown up at the manor I would probably be dead."

"Are you actually thanking me?" she asked curiously. It seemed like a thank you, anyway.

"Yes," he said. "I suppose I am. Believe it or not, I love my family, and I'm happy to be with them again. As my old self, I mean. Not who I had become."

"I do know you love them," she said. "I wasn't blind during the war. I saw how much you all sacrificed and fought for each other. You may not be the kindest wizard in the world, but at least you're not heartless."

"And my son. He … loves you," Lucius said, looking pained as he did so.

"No."

"I may not have been in my right mind, but I know what I heard."

Hermione sighed. "Whether he loves me or not, it doesn't matter. Your wife made sure we're not together. So there is no need to worry yourself into another depressive state. Draco and I are over."

Lucius eyed the door nervously before looking at Hermione. He leaned close and whispered, "If you tell anyone this I will deny it to the death, you hear?" Hermione nodded. Lucius went on. "My wife was wrong. Draco came to visit me a few days ago with that new witch of his. He's not happy. In fact, I've never seen him look so miserable. He loves you and if he chose to be with you …" Lucius paused, looking unsure if he wanted to go on. But then he looked into Hermione's hopeful eyes and knew that he had to. For his son … "I would not disown him."

Hermione gasped. "I-I don't know what to say."

Lucius raised his eyebrows. "Don't get too excited. You wouldn't exactly be invited to family functions either. But, I suppose, there are worse witches out there."

Now Hermione raised her eyebrows. "And I thought I was the one who hit _my_ head. I don't understand. Why are you saying this to me?"

"I almost lost my son once because of the mistakes I made. I won't risk that again. If this is what I have to do to ensure his happiness, then I'm going to do it."

Hermione was just about to ask what Narcissa thought about all of this when the door burst open. Astoria walked in carrying a tray of food. "Sorry I'm late, Mr. Malf - Oh!" Her eyes met Hermione's. "I wasn't aware you had company."

Hermione groaned. Were there no other Healers in this place? "That's alright. I was just leaving." She stood up and walked towards the door.

"Oh, Hermione!" Hermione almost fainted. Had Lucius really just called her that? She turned around. He smiled at her with that signature, cocky, Malfoy grin. "Sorry I tried to kill you."

Hermione gaped at him for a long moment before chuckling lightly. She shook her head at him before leaving the room. She wished she could have said apology accepted but, the truth was, she wasn't over it. She doubted she would ever be, but it was nice to know he was at least somewhat remorseful about his actions.

She looked back just as the door was closing and locked eyes with Astoria. The other witch sighed before returning to her duties. Now that Hermione had seen her she felt much less of an urge to hex her. She just couldn't bring herself to hate this girl for falling for Draco Malfoy. After all, she had.

XXX

When Draco arrived at the bachelor party at the Leaky Cauldron, things were already in full swing. Goyle yelled his name from across the pub and immediately handed him a shot, which Draco took willingly. The groom-to-be was already plastered.

"Didn't think you'd show." Draco turned to see Blaise standing behind him with two glasses of firewhiskey in his hands. "Your favorite, if I recall," he said, handing him one.

"Thanks," said Draco, taking the glass and holding it up in salute. "Cheers."

They each took a sip, Blaise keeping his eyes on his former classmate at all times. "So I heard Astoria's stayed at your place every night since you moved in."

"And where'd you hear that?"

"Doesn't matter. Any truth to it?" he asked.

"What if there was?"

Blaise shrugged. "Nothing really. Just wondering if you've hit that yet. I tried for a solid two months but never got anywhere."

"Zabini! That's my future little sister you're talking about!" shouted Goyle, who was now right in front of them.

Blaise smirked. "Sorry, mate. Didn't mean anything by it. Astoria's a good girl. The kind you wanna marry someday, like Daphne. Not the kind you have a fling with for the summer and then just toss aside. Right, Malfoy?"

Draco narrowed his eyes. He knew Blaise was trying to get a rise out of him, but he wouldn't give him the satisfaction. "I suppose she is. Made me a damn good omelet this morning."

"Well, if that ain't wife material, I don't know what is," laughed Goyle before running off somewhere.

Draco looked back at Blaise, who had his eye on something at the bar. He followed his gaze over to a very sexy witch who kept glancing at them from over her friend's head.

"Care to make a wager like we did back in school?" asked Blaise, glancing sideways at him. "Or are you too committed to your new poppet for that?"

Draco chuckled. Even Blaise had to realize that the girl was looking at him. For some reason he was testing him. Probably to see if he was still his old self or not.

Draco was just about to say no when he realized something. Maybe the reason he couldn't close the deal with Astoria was because he really did see her as future wife material. But this girl … she definitely was nothing of that sort. A one night shag. Nothing more. Maybe _that_ was what he needed to get over Hermione.

"What are the terms?" he asked impulsively.

Blaise smiled. "Same as always. One Knut for whoever can get her upstairs." They had always bet small since neither of them needed the money. Really, the winnings were just for show. "And, of course, the utmost respect from the loser."

"You're on," said Draco, clanking his glass with Blaise's. They each finished the last of their drinks before heading over to the bar.

They'd only been there but a moment when the girl turned to them and asked, "Aren't you Draco Malfoy?"

Draco winked at Blaise. This was too easy. "Why, yes. Yes I am."

"I've heard about you," she said, staring him up and down. "All good, of course." It seemed his reputation still preceded him.

It didn't take long for Draco to get the girl upstairs and into one of the rooms. That was the good thing about drinking at a pub that was also an inn. Easy access. Unfortunately, the moment they walked through the door he realized he had been in this room before. This was where he had last stayed with Hermione.

Trying to forget the memory, Draco began to kiss the girl vigorously. She pushed him onto the bed and climbed on top of him. When he began to unzip her dress he made an error in judgment. He opened his eyes and looked at her, his mind immediately flooded with images of Hermione's face staring down at him.

Draco yelped. He flipped the girl off of him and jumped off the bed. "What was that about?" she asked with an irritated expression.

"Sorry," he said. "Not happening."

Draco ran out of the room and slammed the door behind him. He took a moment to catch his breath before heading back downstairs.

"What? Finished already?" Blaise asked, grinning from ear to ear. Goyle was sitting next to him and looking peeved.

"Didn't do it," he said, plopping down on one of the chairs at their table. "Either way I won the bet."

"You're right," said Blaise, tossing him a Knut. "Nice to see you haven't changed." Draco didn't show it, but he took great offense to that remark. Of course he had changed. And he liked to think it was for the better.

"Oh, thank Merlin!" exclaimed Goyle, his face returning to normal. "I woulda had a hell of a time explaining that one to Daphne."

"Astoria's not my girlfriend," said Draco, taking a shot off of a tray being carried by a passing barmaid and chugging it down. She smiled at him and winked. "Even if I did do it she couldn't be mad."

"So if she's not your girlfriend then why didn't you do it?" asked Goyle.

Draco didn't say anything. The barmaid came by again and slyly slipped three shots on their table. This time he winked at her before greedily taking all three.

Theodore Nott walked over and took a seat. He looked back and forth between Goyle and Blaise who were still staring at Draco. "What's going on?" he asked.

"I'll tell you what's going on," said Blaise, suddenly looking disgusted. "Malfoy's still got a thing for that Mudblood, Granger."

Draco jumped out of his chair and leapt across the table at Blaise, grabbing him in a choke hold. "Don't _ever_ call her that!" he screamed before throwing Blaise to the ground and using his wand to shoot hex after hex at him. He did this until his onetime friend was nothing more than a disgusting, morphed blob covered in various growths.

Once he came to his senses, Draco stared down at what he had done in horror. Theo thought this was hilarious, but Goyle was far less amused. "What the hell, Malfoy?"

"Sorry," said Draco. He reversed his hexes until Blaise at least looked like a human again, and then ran towards the entrance to Diagon Alley.

Once he was outside he leaned against the closest wall and used it to slide down to the ground. He couldn't believe he had just done that. Before the war he never in his wildest dreams would have thought he'd be defending Hermione Granger to Blaise Zabini, someone he had more or less considered a friend.

Draco's head was spinning. He used his hands to steady it. All of the alcohol he had just consumed was finally starting to hit him.

Several minutes later, the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron opened and Goyle emerged. He saw Draco sitting there and came up beside him.

"Sorry, mate," said Draco while Goyle took a seat.

"S'alright. We all know Zabini can be a real git sometimes. Well, all the time."

The two wizards were silent. Goyle took a flask out of his pocket and took a swig of it before handing it to Draco. Even though he didn't need any more to drink, he still wanted it, so he took the flask and followed suit.

"Hope I didn't ruin your bachelor party," Draco said, handing it back to him.

"Wouldn't matter if you did. It's all a sham, anyway." Goyle took another long swig.

"What do you mean?"

Goyle smirked. "Come on, Malfoy. You don't honestly believe a girl like Daphne could ever fall for a bloke like me, do you? Look at me."

Draco did. While he had to admit, Goyle wasn't the most attractive wizard in the world, he still had his upsides. "I don't understand. Are you and Daphne getting married on Saturday or aren't you?"

"Oh, we're getting married, alright. A _lovely_ business transaction made by our fathers. It was Daph's idea to play it off like we were actually a couple. She doesn't want all her friends knowing she was forced into an arranged marriage."

"But I thought you liked Daphne. How come you're making this sound like it's a bad thing?" Draco asked.

"I do like Daphne," said Goyle, handing the flask back to him. "Always have. But Daphne doesn't like me. Not in that way, anyway. So, thanks to my father, in two days' time I will be marrying a girl who will never love me. Try living with something like _that_ for the rest of your life."

Draco took another swig from the flask, this time almost finishing what was left inside of it. "Why are you telling me all of this?" he asked, staring somberly at the ground.

Goyle shrugged. "Dunno. Don't really have anyone else to tell." He took the flask back and finished it off. "And, judging from what just happened in there, I figured you might understand what it's like having to end up with someone you don't want just to make your family happy."

Draco's jaw dropped. By golly, Goyle was right! That was _exactly_ what he was doing. He wanted Hermione, but he was pretty sure he was going to marry Astoria. She was convenient enough, anyway. He instinctually took out his wand and started tapping it on his leg, making random sparks shoot out of the tip.

"So is Daphne's father trying to marry off Astoria too?" he asked, mildly curious.

"Yes and no. Astoria's his favorite, by far. His little pride and joy. He just wants her to marry a pureblood. Doesn't care who. Of course, that hasn't stopped him from pushing her towards Blaise every chance he gets. But Astoria's not into it. So she went for plan B."

"What's plan B?"

Goyle smirked. "Well, in her father's eyes, the only thing more rewarding than marrying his daughter off to a Zabini would be -"

"Marrying her off to a Malfoy," Draco finished. And he thought his family had lost their status. It seemed Mr. Greengrass didn't care about that, as long as they hadn't lost their money.

"Exactly. Ugh …" Goyle rubbed at his throbbing head. Draco wasn't the only one who drank too much. "I probably shouldn't have told you that. Astoria really does like you. Had a crush on you all throughout school. But, well, you know the pressures pureblood families put on their children to marry right and keep the bloodline going."

"Hey! Goyle!" They both looked up to see Theo hanging out of the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron. "That girl Malfoy blew off has agreed to do a special dance for the groom!" he said grinning. "Come and cash in already!"

Goyle grunted before standing up. "You coming?" he asked, looking down at Draco.

He shook his head. "No. I think I'm done for the night."

"Have it your way," he said, walking back to the pub. Before he went inside he shouted back at him, "See you at my wedding!"

Draco sat mindlessly for a moment before he realized he was still tapping his wand against his leg. He stopped moving it and brought it up to his eyes, staring deeply at the ash wand he had chosen. His own barefaced metaphor. He had played it safe with his wand, just like he was playing it safe with Astoria, who, as it turned out, was also playing it safe with him.

Well, that was it! Draco was done playing it safe. With his wand, anyway. In a drunken stupor, he climbed to his feet, almost falling over before using the wall to steady himself. Once he had a good enough balance he began stumbling down the empty streets of Diagon Alley. He had a goal and he would not rest until he accomplished it.

XXX

Several hours later Draco lay in his bed with his new wand in hand. He was still a bit drunk, but he had sobered up enough to realize what an arse he had just made of himself.

Somehow, Draco had made his way to the wand shop, where he proceeded to yell and bang on the door until Ollivander woke up and agreed to let him in. Then there was some incoherent babbling about Hermione and dragons that Ollivander miraculously deciphered. He went and got the wand with the dragon claw clutching the heart, and handed it to Draco. No questions asked. Draco then handed him the ash wand back, said thank you, and left. He wouldn't be surprised if Ollivander banned him for life after this, nor would he blame him.

Feeling a bit dizzy, Draco stroked his hand along the wand one last time before putting it on the nightstand and finally going to sleep.

His eyes barely cracked when he heard his door open a while later. Someone crawled onto the bed. He didn't bother to look and see who. He already knew it wasn't who he wanted it to be.

"Draco," Astoria whispered into his ear. "Are you awake?"

He didn't say anything, but the fluttering of his eyelashes let her know that he was. Astoria rolled over his body and kissed him. Draco opened his eyes and looked at her. She was all dressed up in a sexy, black outfit for Daphne's bachelorette party. She smiled at him.

Draco caught sight of the wand resting on the nightstand behind her. He was obviously not forgetting about Hermione as easily as he had hoped to. Closing his eyes, he kissed her again, this time rubbing his body forcefully against hers. Astoria moved so she was straddling him. She tore off his shirt and rubbed her hands up his bare chest until they ended up his hair, pulling at it the same way Hermione used to.

Draco bit her lip, running his hands up and down her body. They were both panting heavily. When her hand started to move towards his boxers he released her lips and muttered, "Hermione," into her ear.

Astoria pulled away from him. "What?" He opened his eyes and met her gaze. It was hard to say which one was more horrified. She eventually moved off of him, without saying a word, and rolled over to her side of the bed, facing her back towards him.

"Astoria, I'm sorry. Please, come back over here," Draco said, reaching out for her.

"No," she whimpered, moving away from his touch.

"Come on, I didn't mean it. I know your name. Please, just come back over here and let's forget this whole thing ever happened."

Astoria sobbed from the other side of the bed. She sat up and turned so she was facing him. "Draco …" she said, looking down at him with sad eyes … "why don't you want me?"

Draco looked back at her and sighed. "I don't know."

He had meant to lie and say he did want her but, for some reason, this came out instead. But it was still a lie because he did know. Draco didn't want Astoria because he wanted someone else. He wanted the girl whose name he had said. He wanted Hermione.

Astoria plopped back down on the bed and snuggled in close to him. "I kind of hate you, you know?" she said into his chest.

Draco wrapped his arms around her. "I know." She wasn't the only one in this room that hated him. He kind of hated himself too.


	41. Chapter 41

**A/N: This is it! The final chapter! Never thought we'd get here, haha!**

**First off, I want to say thanks to all of my reviewers, but especially those of you who had something nice to say after every chapter. You know who you are :-)**

**I plan to go back through the story and do some editing with both grammar and some facts that need tweaking but, other than that, _Summer of the Dragon_ is over.**

**This story was a lot of fun to write but I'm probably not going to be writing another novel-length fic for a while. I do have a couple of ideas for some shorter things and I hope some of you will come back to my page and read them!**

**But, for now, I need to take a break from Harry Potter. The other day I was reading and I realized all of the voices in my head were speaking with a British accent when I think the characters were from Philadelphia.**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoy the ending! It really was the better one for the story.**

**And, for one final time: I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling.**

**So, without further ado …**

"Draco, are you almost ready?" shouted his mother from his living room while he changed into his dress robes for the wedding.

"Just a second!"

In actuality, Draco was nowhere near ready. He had had a hard time concentrating on anything since he had seen Phillip the day before. The two had met for a drink and one of the first things he did was offer Draco a job at Thinx. His selling point was that there was no better way to improve the Malfoy name than by working for a corporation that's sole purpose was to aid Muggle-borns.

While Draco had not given him an answer yet, he was seriously thinking about saying yes. He would be lying if he said the idea of working under Phillip didn't irk him a bit, but there were definitely worse bosses in the world. And, after what happened at the manor with his father, the Malfoy's definitely needed an angle if they wanted to revitalize their family name.

After that was out in the air, the second thing Phillip did was give Draco photos from his and Sophie's wedding. Sophie had insisted.

Of course, this had caused Draco to come face-to-face with the photo she had made the photographer take of him and Hermione kissing, which he was positive was an intentional play by an evil French genius. Even though anyone could tell they were being instructed by someone off camera - aka Sophie - they still looked extremely happy as they wrapped their arms around each other and snogged like it wasn't their last day doing it.

Draco sighed before putting the photo away and changing into his dress robes. He was just about to leave the room when he grabbed it again and stuffed it into his pocket. For some reason he just felt better having it with him.

Narcissa smiled when she saw him. "Oh, Draco, you look so handsome. Except." She licked her fingers and rubbed them against the back of his head.

"Mum!" he said, pushing her off of him.

"So sorry, darling. Just want you looking perfect for Astoria. You really got lucky with that one. Best not screw it up now."

"Right," sneered Draco before heading over to the fireplace and Flooing to the wedding.

The truth was he hadn't seen Astoria since the morning after he had accidentally called her Hermione. She left for work, saying she wouldn't be coming by later. She had to stay with her sister the night before the wedding, or so she claimed. There was a good chance she might be trying to find herself a different pureblood husband that night.

When he and his mother arrived at the wedding it was already bustling with activity. They were immediately greeted by several house-elves who were cleaning off guests arriving by Floo. Within seconds Draco and Narcissa were soot free.

Taking a good look around, it seemed to Draco that every pureblood wizard in the country, if not the continent, was here. Except for the blood traitors. They were all at Potter's wedding.

As they started heading for their seats, Mr. and Mrs. Greengrass spotted them and came over. "Ah, Narcissa, you are looking lovely as always," said Mr. Greengrass, kissing her hand.

"And Draco, you look very debonair," said Mrs. Greengrass. "Did you two have any trouble getting here?"

"Not at all," said Narcissa brightly. "I love how you have the house-elves cleaning off the guests. I will have to remember that for Draco's wedding someday. Won't I, dear?"

"Uh, yeah," said Draco, looking around for something more interesting.

"Speaking of which, I've heard you've been spending a lot of time with our little Stori, Draco," said Mr. Greengrass. "She just can't stop talking about you."

Draco turned to see both of Astoria's parents beaming at him. "She's a great girl," he said truthfully. They beamed even brighter.

"Mom, Dad, what are you doing?" They all looked over to see Astoria standing there in her long, Slytherin-green bridesmaids dress. Draco had never felt so relieved to see anyone before.

"Nothing, dear," said Mr. Greengrass, giving her a doting kiss on the forehead. "We're all just chatting. Is, uh, that _thing_ ready yet?"

Astoria nodded. "Yes, it's just inside. Would you and Mom mind taking Mrs. Malfoy in -"

"Please, call me Narcissa."

Astoria smiled. "Alright. Would you and Mom mind taking Narcissa in then? I need to talk to Draco for a moment." All three adults were more than willing to leave them alone. Once they were gone, Astoria pulled Draco off to the side. "I should warn you now that the _thing_ he was referring to is your father. They had me pull a few strings to get him out of the hospital for the day."

"Oh," was all Draco could say.

"I know you're not exactly fond of him right now, but he is your father, and this change of scenery will be good for him."

Draco groaned. "I don't want to see him. You know the only reason I went that one time was because you asked me to."

Astoria smiled. "I know. And now I'm asking you to do this. Please just cooperate. Before you know it this night will be over, he'll be back at St. Mungo's and you won't have to see him for who knows how long. So please just be decent tonight. If not for me then for your mom."

Draco stared at her, his face clenched for a long moment before easing. He nodded. Astoria grabbed his hand.

"Thank you." She glanced over at a clock on the wall. "I have to get back to the bride now. She's panicking because that Rita Skeeter woman was supposed to cover their wedding for the _Prophet_, but her supervisor called to cancel. Apparently, she went out of town over a month ago to do research for some book she's writing, but no one has heard from her since."

Draco had to stop himself from laughing. While part of him wanted to tell her that she very well might be the one responsible for Skeeter's disappearance, he knew better. Astoria was a sweet girl. She'd hate herself for possibly killing someone, even if it was unintentional.

"But, Draco, there is something else I want to talk to you about. I'll come and find you after the toasts, alright?" He nodded again. "Great. I'll see you then." Astoria let go of his hand. He leaned down to give her a kiss on the lips, but at the last second went for her cheek instead. She gave him a joyless smile before walking off and leaving him there.

When she was gone Draco reached into his pocket and pulled out his father's old pocket watch. It was still turned off even though there was no reason to keep it that way with Hermione out of his life. He was just about to wind it again when he felt the photo burning a hole in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked at how happy he had been just a few weeks earlier. His heart ached. With a sigh, he put both the photo and the unwound pocket watch back in his pocket. He then headed inside, where he was forced to come face-to-face with his father.

"Ah, Draco, my son," said Lucius, rising from his chair. "You certainly clean up nicely."

"As do you," said Draco, eyeing the cane his father was leaning on.

Lucius followed his gaze. "Do not fret, Draco. There is nothing in it. I've been prohibited from handling a wand until further notice."

"Good," said Draco, taking his seat. Lucius and Narcissa looked at each other and sighed before sitting down next to him.

The wedding wasn't bad. It was nicely decorated with the finest adornments the wizarding world had to offer, but Draco could not help but feel that the entire thing was a bit stiff. No one cried like they did at Sophie and Phillip's wedding, and the bride kept glancing around like she was bored. Astoria was repeatedly shooting her sharp looks to keep her focused while Blaise was repeatedly shooting sharp looks at Draco. As was Pansy. Theo noticed this and chuckled to himself every few seconds. It was a little uncomfortable having the majority of the wedding party's attention on him, but there wasn't anything he could do about it now. He had done more than enough to ensure these people would never be his friends again and, what more, he didn't care.

When the wedding was over the guests were all ushered into a large banquet hall right next door. Draco and his parents' seats were fairly close considering they were last minute invitees. He wondered who got pushed aside to accommodate for them. Then he noticed Blaise's mother with her latest victim - I mean husband sitting towards the back, and he had his answer.

The toasts were about as stiff and dry as the wedding. Except for Astoria's. She and Goyle seemed to have a true brother and sister bond, and she was more than happy to welcome him into her family.

When it was over Goyle and Daphne took to the dance floor and Astoria came and found Draco. She held out her hand and when he took it she pulled him onto the floor. His mother smiled after them but his father was passive.

"This is really the only place for us to have any privacy," said Astoria, pulling him close even though the song was fast. Pansy and Blaise were staring daggers at them from their table. "I don't think your father likes me very much." Draco turned to see his father's daggers were only slightly less sharp. "I think he would rather you were dancing with that Granger girl."

Draco guffawed. "What makes you say that?"

"Because she came to see him the other day."

Draco froze, bringing a swaying Astoria to a halt. He pulled back and looked her in the eyes. "What?" he asked.

"She came to see him," she repeated. "He apologized for trying to kill her. Didn't she tell you?"

Draco raised his eyebrows. "I haven't spoken to her in weeks. You know that."

Astoria smiled. "I guess I always thought you were lying. Why haven't you spoken to her, Draco?"

He looked at her skeptically. "Why are you asking me this?"

"Because I believe I'm wasting my time with you," she said matter-of-factly before forcing him to dance with her again. "I just need to hear you admit that I am."

Draco didn't know how to answer. If she was looking for a husband then she probably wasn't wasting her time, but if she was looking for someone to love her … well, that was another matter entirely.

He glanced at Goyle and Daphne dancing nearby. Neither of them was looking at the other while they moved across the floor, leaving Draco with a horrible sense of pity. Astoria followed his gaze, also frowning at the less than enthusiastic couple.

"He told me, you know. About the arrangement," he said.

Astoria's eyes went wide. "He told you?"

Draco nodded.

"Best not tell Daphne that. She won't hesitate to kill him."

"Tell me, Astoria. How do you feel right now, watching your sister dancing with the new husband she will never love?"

Astoria sighed. "I don't know if that's true. Gregory is a good wizard. And it wasn't just some random choice," she defended. "Daphne had options, and she happened to like him the most out of the options presented to her."

Draco chuckled. "Well, _that's_ romantic. But even you have to admit, if he and Daphne do end up loving each other one day, it will never be a passionate love. It will always just be practical."

"Why do I feel like you're giving me your answer?" said Astoria, looking him square in the eye.

Draco went pale. "That's not what I meant."

"Yes it is. You and I will never have passionate love. Not like you and Hermione have, anyway. Though, I'm pretty sure I'd rock your world if you let me."

"Astoria, I never said -"

"You didn't have to. I saw the way you looked at her at the manor. You have never once looked at me that way and, what more, I don't think you ever will."

"I might."

"No, you won't. And this is why," she said. "Because, right now, you have Hermione up on this pedestal," Astoria used her hands to gesture high above her head, "that no one else is ever going to be able to reach. Not even me. And I'm a catch!"

"I know you are."

Astoria smiled at him before glancing over at Lucius, who was watching them closely. "Listen, Draco, I can tell you right now that if my boyfriend's father ever tried to kill me I'd be out. Point blank. So the fact that she's still around and even willing to go and see him, well, that means she must really love you."

"I still don't understand why you're saying all this to me."

"Because I like you, Draco. Always have," she said, making him give her a twirl. When she was back in his arms, she added, "Believe it or not, I want you to be happy, whether it's with me or with someone else. But I don't think you'll ever be happy with me."

"Astoria … I -"

"Let me finish," she said, putting a finger on his lips to silence him. When he made no further attempt to speak she pulled it away and continued. "Unfortunately, I made my move on you about three months too late. You were in love with someone else when I snagged you and, despite my efforts, I don't think you're falling out of love with her anytime soon. So why not just be with her? It's what you want."

"But … I don't understand," he said again. "You're a pureblood. She's a Muggle-born. You should hate her."

"Why? She's never done anything to me. Except get to you first." She winked.

"Why are you pushing me towards her?" he asked, still not understanding where Astoria was coming from.

She shrugged. "Because you love her. And me … well …" Astoria paused and looked deep into Draco's eyes. It was then that he realized the truth.

"I like you the most out of the options presented to me."

She sighed. "Unfortunately, yes."

"And you like _me_ the most out of the options presented to _you_?"

She sighed louder. "Yes again. But, I should warn you now, if I end up having to marry Blaise because of my selflessness I will not hesitate to hex you every day for the rest of my miserable existence."

Draco glanced over at his parents, who were still watching them closely. "Astoria, you're not going to have to marry Blaise because I've already made my decision."

Astoria laughed. "I hope that's not a proposal because, if it is, I'm afraid I'm going to have to decline. I'm a bit of a hopeless romantic and I demand the whole one knee thing, even from someone I've only been dating for three weeks."

"Don't worry, it wasn't." Draco sighed. "But Hermione is better off without me. Because of me she was hurt and I won't risk -"

"Oh, Merlin, will you shut up already?" she shouted, pulling them to a halt once more. "Stop being so chivalrous, will you? You want her and she wants you. I mean, you're Draco 'fucking' Malfoy! You know what you want, now bloody go and take it! That's what you've always done. Why should this be any different?"

For the first time since she started speaking, Astoria was making sense to him. He _was_ Draco 'fucking' Malfoy, and if he wanted Hermione then why shouldn't he have her? He didn't care about what his extended family thought of him, or pureblood superiority. Well, that wasn't exactly true, but he was now willing to admit there were exceptions to the rule, and Hermione was one of them. Though, he did still care a great deal about money. Luckily, he had a good job offer still pending.

"You're right," he said, his face brightening in revelation. "Why should I be miserable because a bunch of people I don't like will be upset with me?"

"Exactly!"

After just three weeks without her, Draco already knew he could not live happily without Hermione in his life. It was then that he reached a decision. "Tomorrow I'm going to find Hermione, and I'm going to do whatever it takes to win her back!"

"Yea - wait. Why tomorrow?" asked Astoria, stopping mid-movement. Another couple ran into them, scowling before dancing off. Neither of them paid the couple any mind. "Why not right now?"

"Because she's at Potter's wedding right now."

"So?"

"So she's there and I'm here. What am I supposed to do about that?"

Astoria crossed her arms. "Are you really willing to risk waiting until tomorrow, when tonight she is going to be spending the entire evening at a romantic wedding with her _ex_? I'm not normally a gambler, but if there was any chance of them getting back together, I'd bet that tonight was their window."

Draco cringed. He could not let that happen. "So what do you suggest, then? We don't exactly know where it is, do we?"

Astoria gave him a cunning grin. "You can leave that to me. One of the caterer's was bragging to me about how their company also did the food for Harry Potter's wedding. Clearly he didn't know his audience," she said, rolling her eyes. "If he doesn't know where it is I'm sure he can find out." She took out her wand and touched up her lipstick. After adjusting her breasts so they were nice and perky in her tight dress, she told him, "Give me five minutes."

Astoria disappeared into the crowd. Not sure what to do, Draco lingered on the side of the dance floor, watching as his father now danced on unsteady feet with his mother. He was still very weak.

"Got it!" Astoria shouted proudly while running up to him several minutes later. "We just have to tell my sister we're leaving." She grabbed Draco by the hand and pulled him across the floor.

"Wait. You're coming too?" he asked.

"Of course I am! If it weren't for me you wouldn't even be doing this, so I think I deserve to see her face when you show up there."

"She might not be happy to see me."

Astoria rolled her eyes. "Don't be thick. You _know_ she will." She marched right up to her sister and Goyle on the dance floor. They stopped in front of them. "Daphne, Draco and I are going to go and crash Harry Potter's wedding."

"Okay! Have fun!" shouted a very tipsy Daphne, who possibly did not comprehend what her younger sister had just said.

But Goyle understood. "What for?" he asked. When neither of them answered he looked at Draco and shook his head. "You're going after Granger, aren't you?" Draco's eyes said it all. "Is she really worth giving up your whole life for?"

"Oh, don't be so dramatic, Gregory," said Astoria, punching him in the arm. "Just because he's going to be dating a Muggle-born doesn't mean the two of you can't still hang out." Goyle blushed, which made Astoria smile. "Oh, come on. You didn't think I was blind to how much happier you've been since the two of you became friends again, did you?"

"I …"

"Well, don't you worry that thick head of yours. I won't tell anyone you've gone soft." She winked.

Goyle smiled and shook his head. "Just get out of here already, will you?"

Astoria smiled one last time before pulling Draco away. "BYE!" a drunken Daphne called after them.

Narcissa, who had been dancing with Lucius close by and heard part of their conversation, left her husband and followed them out. "Draco, where do you think you're going?" she asked, quickening her steps.

"I'm going to find the girl I never should have left, mother, and probably never would've if it wasn't for you and your sob story."

"How dare you speak to me that way!" she said, jumping in front of him and Astoria, so as to block their path. "I told you that story from the heart. I loved Ethan and -"

"NO!" Draco shouted in her face. "You _do not_ get to compare whatever you had with that Herbology loving Muggle-born with me and Hermione. I love her more than you _ever_ loved him!"

"You don't know that!"

"YES. I. DO." Nostrils flaring, he looked his mother sternly in the eye and said, "If Hermione went missing I would never, _ever_ stop searching for her! I would go to the ends of the earth if I had to! But you … you didn't even try to find out what happened to him! He might be alive somewhere and you never even bothered to find out! You just moved on!"

"Isn't that what you've been doing these last few weeks?" she said, eyeing Astoria.

Draco shook his head. "No. Not a moment has gone by that she hasn't been on my mind. I love her … and I'm going to be with her. Whatever it takes." He took hold of Astoria's hand and pushed past his mother, pulling her towards the fireplaces the guests had come through.

"Draco, please wait!" Narcissa pleaded, still following after them.

"Oh, and by the way," he shouted over his shoulder, "I've been offered a job at a company that specializes in utilizing Muggle technology in the wizarding world … and I think I'm going to take it."

Narcissa felt faint. Luckily, her husband came up behind her and caught her before she had a chance to fall. "Lucius … please, do something." Draco turned around and locked eyes with his father.

Lucius looked at his determined son and shook his head at his wife. "We have to let him go, Narcissa."

"W-what …?"

"Draco has done everything we've ever asked of him. He deserves to be happy."

"I thought the Healers said you were recovering from your mental state?"

"I'm not mental. I'm practical. We didn't risk our lives to protect him during the war only to have him end up miserable."

"But … they'll burn him off the family tree! They'll come after him! They'll take him from us! I can't lose him, Lucius!" Narcissa cried.

Lucius held his wife's head against his chest and stroked it affectionately. "Then we'll protect him as best we can." While his wife cried into his chest, Lucius looked back at his son and said, "Go."

Draco was in a bit of shock, but he managed to nod civilly at his father before reaching the fireplaces and pulling out his Floo powder. He was just about to ask Astoria where they were going when he heard a weird slurping noise.

"Do you hear that?" he asked, looking all around. Astoria did too, eventually gasping when her eyes came upon a witch and wizard half-naked in the corner. Draco followed her gaze and nearly vomited when Blaise and Pansy looked at them.

"Gross," he and Astoria said in unison.

"I thought you had standards, Zabini," said Draco before pulling Astoria to a more distant fireplace. Before anyone else could try to stop them they Flooed out of there.

As it turned out, Potter and Weaselette's wedding was being held at the Weasley home, since they wanted it to be small and intimate. There were a million charms placed around it to keep the media, as well as uninvited guests/Harry Potter fans, out, so they had to Floo to the house of a neighbor of theirs. Astoria insisted that the family, some people called the Lovegoods, would not be home since they were attending the wedding.

"Are you sure they're not here?" asked Draco, crouching extremely low while they walked through the house.

Astoria looked back at him and laughed. "Yes. Positive. The daughter is a bridesmaid. Daphne and I must have run across them a million times while planning her wedding."

The two of them got outside without any trouble, but since it was getting dark they accidentally walked into a bush with a sign beside it reading, 'keep off the dirigible plums'. After using their wands to clean the radish-like fruit off of them, they each said, "Lumos," and used the light to try to find their way.

Unfortunately, they weren't sure where to go next. The caterer had given Astoria very vague directions. The charms had apparently gone up the night before and the Lovegoods home was where many of the workers and guests had come in through, but his information was all just hearsay.

After quite a bit of walking in circles, they eventually stumbled upon the place. The wedding reception was already in full swing but no noise could be heard from this side of the barrier. Draco and Astoria went up and started looking for any weak spots in it. She was the one who came across a small, Knut-sized opening, and she used her wand to expand it just enough so no one would notice. After it was finished, Draco and her both looked at it and frowned.

"There's no way I can fit through that," he said. "You're sure we can't make it any larger?"

"Positive," she said. "Do you want me to go in and bring her out? There's a chance she might hex me the moment she sees me, but after coming all this way it seems silly not to risk it."

"You really think you can get her out here?" he asked skeptically.

Astoria gave him a reassuring smile. "Absolutely. All I have to do is mention your name and I'm sure she'll come running."

Without waiting for him to say yes, Astoria got on her knees and crawled into the small opening, barely making it through without touching the sides. As soon as she was in the clear she turned around and gave Draco a thumbs up before heading into the party.

Trying to blend in, she grabbed a glass of champagne off of a floating tray and started scanning the tented reception area for Hermione. Everyone here seemed to be having much more fun than they were at Daphne and Goyle's wedding. She almost wanted to stop and dance with them.

Eventually she spotted her sitting alone at one of the tables, staring mindlessly at a napkin she was twisting in her hands. She looked miserable, as to be expected.

Astoria started heading towards her, only to be interrupted by a freckly-faced, ginger wizard blocking her path and guiding her away by the shoulder.

"What the bloody hell are you doing here?" asked who she immediately recognized as Ron Weasley. "Come to torture Hermione some more by rubbing your budding romance with Malfoy in her face?"

"No, no!" shouted Astoria, waving her hands in defense. "Quite the contrary! Draco just wants to speak with her! Are you really so bitter that you're going to deny him this one request?"

Ron stopped walking and whipped her around. "Malfoy's here?" he asked.

Astoria nodded. "I promise we're not together. He just really needs to speak with her. He wants to make this right."

"And you're alright with that?"

She nodded again.

"But I thought you were his girlfriend or something?"

"We've only been dating for three weeks. I'm not exactly heartbroken by this." Astoria smiled at him. "While I find this romantic tryst endearing, you're the one who should be upset. Are you?" she asked nosily.

"Of course I am!" snapped Ron. He glanced back at Hermione, who now had her forehead plopped down on the table. Grawp sat on the floor just behind her, trying to put a comforting hand on her shoulder which only ended up pressing her entire back so she was pinned in place. Hagrid came over and guided the giant away. Ron sighed. "Take me to him first. I need to speak with him before he speaks with her."

Astoria looked at him skeptically. "You're not going to, like, hex him or anything, are you?"

"I'm not going to hex him," promised Ron. "I just want to talk to him."

Peeking over his shoulder at Hermione, Astoria tried to get her attention, but it was no use. Hermione's head was still planted firmly on the table, making her completely blind to her surroundings.

With no other options presented to her, Astoria finally said, "Alright," and started leading Ron to Draco, making sure to grab another glass of champagne on her way out. This was shaping up to be a night where drinking was necessary.

When they walked through the barrier, Draco was surprised to see Astoria with Ron instead of Hermione. "I was spotted!" shouted Astoria as soon as she was through the soundproof shield.

Draco had no time to respond before Ron was in front of him and punching him in the face. The impact was so strong, Draco fell to the ground.

Astoria shrieked behind them. "You said you weren't going to hurt him!"

"I said I wasn't going to hex him. I didn't say anything about punching," said Ron, rubbing at his hand. "I believe I was owed that one."

"Ugh … fair enough," said Draco, climbing to his feet. "I suppose I more or less deserved that."

"_More or less_?" repeated Ron, his voice cracking as he stared at Draco with a cold fury. Which is a bit of a contradiction, but the only proper way to describe the feeling in his eyes.

"Alright, have it your way. I _did_ deserve that. What I did to you was -"

"_Me_? You really think this is about me?"

"It's not?"

"Of course not!" shouted Ron. "This is about bloody Hermione! She's been absolutely miserable ever since she got back!"

Draco eyed him curiously. "Are you honestly telling me you're mad I broke it off with her? I thought you would've seen this as your opportunity to win her back."

"I don't want to win her back, Malfoy. It's over between us. It was over before the summer even began. I just …" he gulped … "didn't want to let go."

Astoria was watching Ron from the sidelines with great interest. Ever since he threw that punch she couldn't take her eyes off of him.

"Sometimes you've been through so much with someone that you don't want to admit to yourself when the spark is gone. It wasn't until I got that stupid letter of yours that I realized I didn't want her back just as much as she didn't want me back. And, as much as I hate to admit it, for some unknown reason she wants you."

"Does that mean you're going to let me in?" Draco asked hopefully.

Ron shook his head. "No. I'm not going to let you in. But if you promise to never leave her again, and to … to make sure to protect her from your family, then I will go in there and I will bring her out."

Draco looked sincerely into the other wizards eyes and nodded. "I promise." He had never meant anything more in his life. Hermione was all he wanted and he was willing to do whatever it took to be with her.

Ron looked back at him and nodded as well. "I believe you." The two wizards kept their gaze, realizing that, for the first time since they'd known each other, they finally had something in common. They both cared a great deal for Hermione and they wanted her to be happy. "You need to know now, Malfoy, that you and I will never be friends."

Draco gave him his signature, Malfoy grin. "I know. But I promised Hermione a while back that I would _try_ to be decent towards you. Any chance you'll do the same?"

"We'll see," smirked Ron, turning back towards the reception. "I'll be back shortly."

As soon as he was gone, Astoria went over to Draco and used her wand to heal his face a bit before Hermione arrived. "Should I leave a small bruise as a reminder?" she laughed.

Draco narrowed his eyes at her. "Honestly, what kind of Healer are you?"

"The best kind," she said, giving in and healing the whole thing.

Several minutes later, Draco could make out Ron walking towards him with a beautiful witch in a flowing, scarlet dress at his side. His heart started beating fast. She was arguing with Ron about something, but he couldn't make any of it out until they came through the barrier.

"Honestly, Ron, I don't know why you need to show this to me now. I've seen the gnomes a million times and this wouldn't be the first time they pulled their trousers down and spanked their little bottoms at - Oh! Draco!" Hermione froze.

Draco wasn't any better. He stared at her openmouthed, unable to muster any words. Hermione's eyes moved to Astoria, who was smiling at no one in particular before meeting her gaze.

"Oh, me!" Astoria said suddenly. "I'm just here for moral support."

Hermione then turned her attention to Ron, who smiled weakly at her before walking back towards the reception. Astoria tried to follow him, but was knocked to a halt by the barrier. Ron came back and cast some sort of charm on her hand. After that she was able to walk inside.

Once they were gone, Hermione looked back at Draco and asked, "Why are you here?"

"I … you … went to see my father," was all he came out with.

Hermione raised her eyebrows at him. "Is that really why you're here?" He didn't say anything. "Well, if that's the only reason then I feel the need to tell you my being there was all an accident. I was just out walking and the next thing I knew I was inside of St. Mungo's. I actually think I might have gone there to hex Astoria, but when they asked me who I wanted to see I panicked."

Draco laughed. "And my father's the best name you could come up with?"

Hermione shrugged. "I never actually thought I'd be given the okay to see him."

"For some reason that story only makes me like you more," Draco said while laughing even louder. "You were really going to hex Astoria for me?"

"I was never _actually_ going to do it, but it was nice to think about." Draco took a step forward, but Hermione took a step back. "You still haven't told me why you're here."

"I wanted to see you," he said, slowing his pace. Hermione did not move away this time.

"Why?" she asked. "I thought you'd be busy shagging your new girlfriend."

Draco smiled. "She's not my girlfriend." Hermione was finally in his grasp. She started to take another step back but he reached out and seized her hand, pulling her in and closing the space between them. "Would you hate me less if I told you I never shagged her?"

"I don't know. Would it be a lie?"

Still smiling, Draco shook his head. "No. I never thought about anyone but you." He reached up and tucked a loose curl behind her ear.

Hermione fell weak in the knees, but Draco was right there to catch her. "This isn't fair," she said. "I had already decided I was going to try and win you back but, here you are, beating me to the punch." She paused and stared deep into his gray eyes that were sparkling silver in the moonlight. "Why are you here, Draco?" she asked again in an almost whisper.

"Because I want to be with you," he said, finally filling that last gap between their lips and kissing her.

XXX

Inside the reception, Ron was sulking at a table by himself. Astoria watched him from across the room, before finally grabbing two glasses of champagne and joining him. "You look like you could use this." She handed him a glass.

"Thanks," he said, chugging it down in one sip.

"Classy," she said, doing the same. A tray floated by and she grabbed two more. "If it's any consolation, I think what you did was very noble. Hermione is lucky to have a friend like you." Astoria put a comforting hand on his leg. "She doesn't know what she's missing."

Ron looked down at her hand, which was now stroking the spot just above his knee. It took him a moment, but he eventually caught on that she was flirting with him. He was just about to say something he assumed to be witty when Ginny showed up with Harry in tow. "Ron! What is _she_ doing here?" Apparently _everyone_ knew about Draco Malfoy's new love interest.

"She's my guest," Ron said casually. "I'm allowed a guest, aren't I?"

"Well … yes, but -"

"Where's Hermione?" Harry asked, only now noticing that she was no longer sitting face down at her table.

Ron held up a finger and said, "One guess."

Harry and Ginny looked at each other. "He's here?" they both asked at the same time.

Ron nodded.

Ginny turned her eyes to Astoria. "But … aren't you …"

"His girlfriend?" she finished. Ginny and Harry nodded. "No."

"But you're shagging?" Ginny asked.

Astoria laughed. "Oh, Merlin, no! Not to say I didn't try, but the one time we got even remotely close he ended up calling me Hermione and … well, it was a bit of a mood killer, if you know what I mean. Other than some mild snogging he's been completely faithful."

"Isn't your sister's wedding today?"

Astoria waved it off. "Oh, yeah, but she's drunk. Probably hasn't even noticed I'm gone, even though I told her I was leaving right to her face."

"Ron, are you okay?" Harry asked, looking concerned.

Ron nodded, darting his eyes several times towards Astoria so they would take the hint.

Ginny caught on first, grinning widely at her brother. It was good to see he was getting back in the game, even if it was with a Slytherin. "Come on, Harry. Let's go dance," she said, pulling her new husband away.

"Deed you say Draco was 'ere?" asked the French girl, Sophie, appearing out of nowhere.

"Uh, yeah," said Ron. "He and Hermione are down by the garden."

Sophie squealed before grabbing her husband, who was chatting with Professor McGonagall, and pulling him towards the garden.

Once they were gone, Luna Lovegood walked by in a dreamy state. She turned her head when she noticed Astoria, came over and said, "Have you been eating dirigible plums recently? The Wrackspurts are all over you."

Astoria raised her eyebrows at her. "I'm sorry?"

Ron just laughed. "I didn't know Wrackspurts liked dirigible plums."

"Oh, yes, they love them. That is why we grow them outside our house."

"In case you have a sudden need for a Wrackspurt?" asked Astoria.

Luna nodded before her gaze drifted off. "Oh, I love this song." She wandered off, but in the opposite direction of the dance floor.

Astoria and Ron looked at each other and laughed. "I think I stepped in her dirigible plum bush on my way over here." This only made them laugh harder. When it died down they both turned their heads and watched the people dancing. After a moment had passed, she turned back to him and said, "I have to ask." He was all ears. "You didn't sleep with Pansy Parkinson, did you?"

Ron burst into a new heap of laughter and shook his head. "Do I really look that desperate?" he asked.

Astoria smiled. "Just checking." She looked back at the dancing guests. "Everyone looks like they're having so much fun here. Slytherin weddings are never this informal."

"Is that your subtle way of telling me you want to dance?"

Astoria glanced sideways at him and smirked. "That depends. Are you offering?"

Ron stood up and held out his hand. Astoria blushed slightly before taking it.

"Oh, wait a moment, will you?" She took out her wand and used it to shorten her dress. "Much better," she said, twirling around. "That long thing was terribly uncomfortable to move in. I don't know what Daphne was thinking."

Ron laughed. "You're a bit funny for a Slytherin."

"I'm going to choose to ignore that comment," she said, grabbing back onto his hand and walking out to the dance floor. "You Weasley's are purebloods, right?"

XXX

Sophie and Phillip ran down to the garden in utter delight. When they got there Hermione and Draco were still deep in lip lock. They stayed on their side of the barrier so their friends would not hear them approach, and snuck off into the shadows, watching them with smiles on their faces.

Hermione and Draco stopped to catch their breath, plopping their foreheads together. They looked into each other's eyes while Draco stroked Hermione's cheek. She smiled. "Before we decide to start this again, there's just one thing I need you to do first. A test of sorts."

"Name it and I'll do it," said Draco, desperate to prove himself to her.

Hermione released him and pulled out her wand. "_Expecto Patronum_," she said, releasing her translucent otter. "Now you. And make sure you're thinking of me when you do it."

Draco took out his new wand, which Hermione immediately recognized as the one she had carved, and said, "_Expecto Patronum_," while thinking of the last night they had spent together in France. His dragon came out much smaller than the last time, but was still just as powerful. When her otter floated by it did not attack it. "Satisfied?" he asked.

"Not yet," she said, grabbing his collar and pulling him in for a passionate kiss. Draco matched her enthusiasm, massaging her tongue expertly with his and moving his hands back up to cup her face. Her otter and his dragon began to sway around together in dance-like movements. Hermione and Draco pulled away from each other, panting heavily before staring deep into the other's eyes. Both of them were smiling. "What changed your mind?" Hermione asked, clutching her arms tightly around his waist. She wasn't going to dare let him go.

"I don't know if my mind was ever fully convinced in the first place," he answered. "This is going to be a risk, Mione. I need you to realize that."

"I do," she said, only holding him tighter. "And I'm willing to take that risk, if it means I get to be with you. I love you, Draco."

A tear slipped down Draco's cheek. He leaned up and kissed her forehead. "I love you too, Mione. More than anything."

Until that moment Hermione had been able to hold herself together, but hearing him say those words - something she never thought she'd hear again - was all it took to make her burst into tears of joy. "Your father told me he won't disown you," she said, laughing between sobs.

"I know," said Draco, laughing right along with her. "I think those Dementors must have really done a number on him."

"Or he just loves you."

Music suddenly started playing all around the garden. Several fireflies were fluttering about and the sound seemed to be coming from them. Hermione and Draco looked around until they came upon two familiar silhouettes crouched in the shadows.

"Sophie!" Hermione shouted.

"Pip!" Draco shouted at the same time.

"Pip?" Phillip repeated while climbing to his feet. This was his first time hearing Draco's new nickname for him.

"Do not mind us," said Sophie, pulling him back down. "Just pretend we are not even 'ere."

Hermione and Draco both laughed. Looking back at each other, he held his hand out. She took it and he gave her a twirl before pulling her into his arms and swaying to the music.

Phillip put his arm around Sophie and the newlyweds watched happily while their friends danced in front of them. Just one of many to come.

"You know, as of yesterday the summer is officially over. Does this mean we're not having a summer fling anymore?" Draco asked, raising his eyebrows.

Hermione laughed into his shoulder. "I suppose it does. Are you open to the idea of an autumn fling?"

"Only if you're open to a possible winter one."

She smiled. "And spring will be here before we know it."

"Followed by summer again … shall we have a year round fling then?"

"Just until we get sick of each other."

Draco nuzzled his nose against her cheek. "Well, that's not right. I'm pretty sure we got sick of each other just about every day this summer, yet here we are."

Hermione chuckled. He had her there. "I don't suppose you'd be willing to take this dancing up to the reception? They have a floor and everything."

Draco smirked at her. "You're such a smartass."

She smirked back. "I learned from the best. So shall we go?" she said, stopping their dancing and holding out her hand to him.

"I don't think Weasley wants me up there very much … so yes," he said, taking her hand. "Let's do it."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Believe me, Ron is the least of our worries. No one will try to hex us like they would at a Slytherin wedding, but they won't exactly be friendly either."

"I can handle not friendly," said Draco. "I haven't always been the friendliest of fellows myself, you know."

"You don't say."

"Oh, shut your mouth."

"Make me."

And Draco did shut her mouth; with his own. When the kiss ended they both smiled at each other nervously before Hermione cast the invitation charm on him. They started walking towards the reception hand-in-hand.

"Come along Mr. and Mrs. Prior!" Draco called back at their friends. "I get the feeling we're going to need a couple of highly trained bodyguards tonight."

"Bring eet on!" shouted Sophie, running ahead of them with her wand held high. Phillip was just behind her and doing the same.

"Your job is to protect, not intimidate!" Hermione shouted after them.

"Yes mother!" they said, putting their wands away.

Hermione looked back at Draco and the two shared a smile. "Here goes nothing," she said squeezing his hand.

"After capturing a couple of dragons this really does seem like nothing," he said, squeezing back. They shared another quick kiss and together they walked on.

Despite the challenges that would undoubtedly be waiting for them, Hermione and Draco were ready. They knew their life together would not be an easy one, since many wizards and witches were already rooting against them. But, nevertheless, they were going to try.

When the summer began neither of them expected to fall in love, but now that they had they were going to do everything they could to hold onto it. The war changed a lot of things. Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy were no exception.

The End

**Extra A/N: Thanks again! I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

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	42. Fighting for the Malfoys

I figured this was the easiest way to get this message out to 'Summer of the Dragon' fans. I know I swore I wasn't going to do this, but after I decided to change the ending (yes, I'm confessing, the original plan was for them **not**__to end up together) there was less closure than I originally anticipated. Shortly after I finished writing it a new idea entered my head that I couldn't shake loose. While I am all for open-ended conclusions I feel Draco and Hermione still had a lot to go through before they could finally live happily ever after.

So that is why I ran with my idea. I just wanted to play around with it at first, but have finally decided to go ahead and post it.

Even though it is technically a sequel to this story I plan on trying to make it a standalone since the genres are very different. This will not be an adventure story and promises to be much darker than 'Summer of the Dragon'. I believe with every great love there is great sacrifice and Draco and Hermione are going to find this out big time.

That being said, please go to my page and start reading my new story, 'Fighting for the Malfoys'. I promise, you won't be disappointed!

~ Lena


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